Avs in on free agent Donskoi, which suggests a change in team philosophy and planning

I thought I had a scoop tonight. Probably about 20 minutes ago, I got credible information, I believe, that the Avs want to sign potential unrestricted free agent Joonas Donskoi on Monday.

I then casually check my timeline on Twitter and see that, dammit, Pierre Lebrun had it a bit earlier. I suspect we might have heard from the same source. Hey, who cares who was first, right? The information is the important thing.

The Avs, a source told Colorado Hockey Now, are one of the finalists to land the 27-year-old Finn, who has spent the entirety of his NHL career in San Jose. I really like Donskoi a lot. He had 37 points this past season for the Sharks, and his puck-possession numbers have always been good. He’s fast and has played on nothing but winning teams for a demanding coach. Here’s a San Jose local blog scouting report on him.