Why Jared Bednar Isn’t Worried About Zach L’Heureux’s Suspension History

Jared Bednar isn't too concerned about Zach L’Heureux's past.

He knows about it. So does everyone else around the Avalanche.

L’Heureux has racked up 12 suspensions since the start of his career, dating back to his days in the QMJHL. He's missed 42 games because of those bans. The latest came last January, when the NHL gave him three games for slew-footing Wild captain Jared Spurgeon.

It's a long list for a 23-year-old.

But Bednar isn't looking at L’Heureux and seeing only the suspensions.

“We're aware of his past just like you guys are,” Bednar told reporters Tuesday.

There's obviously some work to do. L’Heureux has already admitted as much. But Bednar sees a young player who is still learning how to play with the physical edge that makes him effective without letting that side of his game get him into trouble.

And he's been down this road before.

When the subject of L’Heureux's history came up, Bednar brought up Nazem Kadri.

Kadri was 28 when Toronto traded him to Colorado in 2019. He wasn't a young player trying to find his way in the NHL anymore. He had been around, had established himself and had already been suspended four times for on-ice incidents.

The reputation followed him to Colorado.

So did the occasional mistake.

During the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Kadri was suspended eight games for an illegal check to the head of St. Louis Blues defenseman Justin Faulk. It was his fifth suspension for an on-ice incident and his third in the playoffs.

And then, nothing.

Kadri hasn't been suspended since.

He didn't suddenly become a different player, either. He still played with an edge. He still brought the physicality and wasn't afraid to get under an opponent's skin. He just got better at knowing when that edge was helping him and when it was going too far.

“He still kind of plays on the edge at times,” Bednar said. “But he's still, he's disciplined guy. You know, he wants to win. He's matured into knowing when he has to play physical and play with grit, and, you know, when he can, like, kind of tone that down a little bit.”

That's a pretty good blueprint for what Colorado needs from L’Heureux.

The Avalanche didn't bring him in because they wanted him to tone down everything that makes him effective. They need some bite from him. They need somebody who is willing to make opponents uncomfortable and push back when games get nasty.

Colorado has had plenty of skill. But in the playoffs, it's run into teams like Dallas and Vegas that are more than willing to make a game difficult and turn it into a fight for every inch.

L’Heureux can help in those situations.

He just can't let that part of his game take over.

“We'll just watch him play,” Bednar said, “and we'll have discussions on when we think he needs to dial it back a little bit, or when he needs to ramp it up a little bit.”

That's probably the biggest thing L’Heureux has to figure out.

Not how to become less physical. Not how to stop playing with an edge. Just when to use it.

He's already said he needs to clean up that part of his game. At 23, there's still plenty of time for him to do that.

Kadri is the obvious example.

He was 28 when he arrived in Colorado and had already made plenty of mistakes in that regard. Even after joining the Avalanche, he had one more major suspension to serve before he finally got past it.

L’Heureux is getting the chance to learn that lesson much earlier.

Colorado doesn't need him to become somebody else. It needs him to figure out how to be the player he already is without constantly paying the price for it.

Bednar seems willing to give him the time to figure that out.