The first day of NHL free agency was yesterday. The Colorado Avalanche were hoping to sign a left-handed defenseman. Colorado agreed to contracts with forward Blake Comeau and defenseman Francois Beauchemin. How will these guys help the Avalanche next year in hopes of returning to the playoffs?
Many hockey experts thought that Francois Beauchemin was going to re-sign with the Anaheim Ducks while the Avalanche were going to make a deal with defenseman Andrej Sekera. The Edmonton Oilers gave Sekera a 6 year, $33 million deal which is $5.5 million a year. The Avalanche decided to go after Francois Beauchemin who agreed to a 3 year, $13.5 million contract or $4.5 million per year.
Francois Beauchemin can score goals and set up teammates. Last season he scored 11 goals and had 12 assists for 23 points. In the postseason he had 9 assists. The Ducks went all the way to the Western Conference finals before falling to the Chicago Blackhawks in seven games.
Francois Beauchemin brings leadership and toughness that Colorado lacked last year. According to the Denver Post, Executive Vice President and General Manager Joe Sakic wanted a player who could play a lot of minutes as a defenseman with Eric Johnson. Sakic feels they have that in Francois Beauchemin saying, “He played top minutes with Anaheim, and that was the biggest thing: we were looking for somebody to play with EJ for top minutes, play against the other team’s top line. We looked at all the free agents out there and there were only a handful that we knew could play. Francois did a tremendous job for Anaheim and I know he’s excited to come here and do the same thing here and play with EJ. “
Francois Beauchemin told the Denver Post he feels he will improve the Colorado Avalanche saying, “I’m that defensive-mindset defenseman and like to play that hard, physical game. (Johnson and I) complement each other, reading off each other and making that first breakout pass to make it easier to get out of our zone. That’s been my game for 10 years and I’m going to keep doing that.”
The Avalanche also signed forward Blake Comeau to a three year $7.2 million deal. Comeau had 16 points and 15 assists for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Joe Sakic feels Comeau can play on any line saying, “He’s a versatile player. He can go up and down your lineup. He plays a north-south game. He skates hard. He hits hard. He’s a puck possession guy. And he’s good on the penalty kill. He can also get you 15 goals.”
The Colorado Avalanche made great deals in free agency so far. Both of these players bring veteran leadership and a physical game. The Avs wanted a left-handed scoring defenseman. They now have that with Francois Beauchemin. He will set up his teammates for goals and will also help them clear the puck away from goalie Semyon Varlamov. Forward Blake Comeau is a versatile player who can play on any line for the Avalanche. The Avalanche are a better team by adding both of these skaters. When the regular season starts, we will find out if these moves will make the Avalanche a playoff team.
What do you think of the Avalanche signing Francois Beauchemin and Blake Comeau?
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