No.
There is a reason Chris Kreider is available, and it has no to do with whether he can still play.
The former first-round pick, who potted 52 goals during the 2021-22 season, is on the open market after the Anaheim Ducks and Kreider agreed to terminate his contract in a cost-savings move, thus creating an opportunity for a veteran forward who could still help a contender.
Naturally, some Colorado Avalanche fans believe he’s worth a look.
But there is a very obvious issue.
The Avalanche don’t have the luxury of simply deciding they want Kreider and figuring out the rest later. This isn’t Congress, where someone can throw another few trillion dollars into the budget, and it certainly isn’t NHL 27, where you can turn off the salary cap in Franchise Mode and basically create your super team via cheating.
There’s a salary cap. The Avalanche have about $400,000 to spare and Kreider carried a $6.5 million cap hit with the Ducks this season. Someone would have to get traded in order for the Avalanche to even entertain the idea of bringing Kreider on the team.
We’re not going to discuss who they should trade if they want to make this work because here’s the bottom line, it doesn’t make any sense.
The Avalanche are well within the window of potentially competing for another Stanley Cup title and the roster they currently have entering the 2026-27 campaign is likely the best shot they have.
This is the last year Cale Makar will earn $9 million before he makes a record-breaking $20.4 million next season. From that point, it’s up to general manager Joe Sakic to get as creative and clever as possible.
If there’s anyone who can get it done, it’s Sakic. But as far as this team is concerned, the Avs are pretty much set to take the ice as they are.
