Undrafted, undersized, and overlooked, Jack Ahcan is proving to Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar that heart and grit can outweigh size on the ice.
DENVER — Jack Ahcan may not be the biggest presence on the ice, but he plays with the heart of a man a foot taller — and people have begun to take notice, but Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar has been a fan of his game for a while.
Last season with the Colorado Eagles — the Avalanche’s AHL affiliate — Ahcan logged more than 23 minutes a night and appeared in 63 consecutive games. You can see it in his bearing, in the way he walks, talks, and competes. This is something he refuses to let slip through his hands.
“He’s been really good for us,” Bednar stated on Thursday. “We have six guys here, so it’s a little give and take with Jack and Solo (Ilya Solovyov) right now.”
Tiny, But Mighty
The 5-foot-8, 180-pound Ahcan produced 41 points (5 goals, 36 assists) in 69 games for the Eagles last season. Yet it was during this most recent training camp and preseason that the undrafted defenseman truly set himself apart — a run of play so compelling it felt fair to say he had earned his stripes. The complication for Colorado, however, is a welcome one: the Avalanche simply have too many defensemen.
“He basically made our team,” Bednar added. “But we do have numbers. He’s cleared waivers and he has the ability to come up and go down and play.”
Bednar also emphasized that a reassignment is hardly an indictment — particularly for a player like Ahcan, a late bloomer by NHL standards. If he isn’t going to play, there’s little value in having him sit in the press box. After all, as The Hockey News previously stated, this is the same player who appeared in 63 consecutive games last season at the AHL level. Wherever the opportunity for meaningful minutes exists, that’s where Jack Ahcan wants to be — and where he intends to go. And for Bednar, the priority is simple: keep him loose and ready.
“I don’t want him sitting around if he’s not playing,” he continued. “Because when he’s down (in Loveland), he makes a huge impact on the Eagles’ success. And he plays power play; he gets lots of puck touches, (he’s a) high-minute guy. So I want him to continue to do that, so when we need him up here that he’s sharp.”
Smart Strategy
Given his frame, Ahcan will likely be deployed against smaller, faster teams, such as the New Jersey Devils — and Bednar did just that in their most recent matchup on Tuesday, when the Avalanche secured an 8-4 victory and Ahcan notched his first point of the season. It also wouldn't be surprising to see Ahcan utilized on November 4, when the Avalanche take on the Tampa Bay Lightning at Ball Arena.
The Vegas Golden Knights, whom Colorado defeated 4-2 on Friday, like New Jersey, are similarly quick, yet they bring a significant physical presence, particularly Ivan Barbashev, who famously fractured Avalanche defenseman Samuel Girard’s sternum during the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs. In Game 3 of the Second Round, when Barbashev skated for the St. Louis Blues, he slammed Girard into the boards after the defenseman cleared the puck out of his own zone. Colorado went on to eliminate the Blues in six games.
Styles make fights in combat sports — and the same holds true in hockey. Sometimes, you simply have to compete in your own weight class.
Nonetheless, the Avalanche have a genuine grinder in Jack Ahcan, and he is poised to play a pivotal depth role in the organization this season.
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