Life can change fast in the NHL.One minute you’re at the rink getting ready to practice with your team, the next minute you’re packing your bags to fly a few time zones away to start a new adventure. Sometimes a trade will really catch someone off guard, but players playing for teams outside of the playoff picture are usually more prepared to get the news than others.Especially if you’ve got an expiring contract.
“I saw my name floating around, so I definitely thought (a trade) was a possibility,” Ryan Lindgren said after his first practice with the Avalanche. “Didn’t know for sure it was going to happen here, but really excited to be here.”Lindgren is the big addition that general manager Chris MacFarland made on Saturday for his Avalanche squad. Colorado felt it has overworked its top four defensemen and wanted to find someone else it could trust to handle some difficult minutes. They believe Lindgren is that guy.Coach Jared Bednar is certainly happy to have him.”That’s a big add,” Bednar said of Lindgren. “The depth, getting another really strong penalty killer, the physicality around the net front and down low in your own zone to be able to help close plays out. He can play a lot, and I think that will help lighten the load and allow us to be able to, especially on the penalty kill, save some ice-time off of (Toews) and (Makar).”Lindgren has spent most of the last few years attached to Adam Fox, one of the top defensemen in the NHL. Bednar noted that that won’t be the case here and that could be a benefit to his game. The numbers for Lindgren away from Fox haven’t been pretty, but Bednar was quick to point out that they value a lot of what he can bring to the table.”Analytics are tricky,” Bednar said. “We might not value the same things (the Rangers) value. Our model is likely different, and we may deploy him different. He might see less time against some of the top guys in the league. We’re excited about the physicality, the net-front presence, all the defending metrics.”
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“We feel like if we get an understanding of his game, get him clear on our system, deploy him the right way, we feel like those numbers will be moving in the right direction.”If practice is any indication, Lindgren will likely start playing with Sam Malinski. Bednar said he’d like to keep Lindgren and Josh Manson on separate pairs when they’re fully healthy, which might be soon. Manson joined the Avalanche for the first 15 minutes of practice before leaving, a mild surprise after Bednar didn’t have a timeline for his return just a few days back. Sounds like it won’t be long before he’s back.”He’s getting close,” Bednar said.The other player that came to Denver with Lindgren is veteran forward Jimmy Vesey. Bednar noted that the Rangers liked Juuso Parssinen and that both forwards might have needed a change of scenery.Coming out of college, Vesey was a highly touted offensive prospect, but that offense didn’t really translate to the NHL level. The reason why Vesey has stuck around in the league for almost a decade is because he developed his game on the defensive side of the puck and became a player coaches can really trust.The 31-year-old noted that killing penalties has become a big part of his game in recent years. Both Lindgren and Vesey spent a large portion of practice chatting with Avalanche assistant coach Nolan Pratt, who runs the penalty kill, and both players were set to meet with him again after practice.It might be tough for Vesey to crack Colorado’s lineup as it’s currently constructed, but a lot can still change in the next week.”He’s a little bit of a Swiss army knife,” Bednar said. “Another top penalty killer as a forward. (You) can’t have enough of those. He’s got good size, got a little bite to his game, kind of fits the mold of what our third and fourth lines are playing to right now.”Coming from a team that has underachieved all year, both are excited to join a team looking to make a deep run in the postseason.”You just look at the roster and the names on the roster, it’s a lot of star power,” Vesey said. “This team, I think, is a big Cup contender and pumped to be here.”