Peter Holland Coming To Avalanche Training Camp On A PTO

It’s August 22, and we’ve already got the name of one player coming to training camp for the Colorado Avalanche on a professional tryout.

I don’t expect him to be the only one, either.

Peter Holland, who was once a first round pick way back in 2009 by the Anaheim Ducks, will be headed to training camp with the Avalanche.

Professional Tryout
Peter Holland (C) | COL#GoAvsGohttps://t.co/HEb0qubblF

— CapFriendly Transactions (@CF_Transactions) August 22, 2023

The idea of the team bringing in someone on a PTO isn’t a surprise at all. Holland being one of them is a surprise, though. Why?

He retired in March of 2022.

PRESS RELEASE!

I have decided to step away from the game of hockey. It feels weird to say retire, but I guess that’s what it is.

I’m not sure if a Twitter thread is an appropriate forum to announce this but when you were a bubble guy, there’s no press conference, banner

1/18

— Peter Holland (@PeterHolland13) March 16, 2022

The 32-year old Holland did not play anywhere professionally last season, so this attempted comeback will be interesting to watch. The last team he played for was Djurgardens IF in the Swedish Hockey League. He last only 15 games, and registered just 6 assists.

The last time he played in the NHL was 2018. He spent another year in the AHL before heading overseas to the KHL. His two seasons in the KHL were productive before he went off to Sweden.

Holland spent time in the NHL with Anaheim, Toronto, Arizona, and the New York Rangers. The Avalanche could use some additional depth up front, so we’ll see if Holland is able to provide that. His best season came all the way back in 2015/16, when he scored 27 points in 65 games, so it’s been a while since he was a full-time NHL player.

If nothing else, this gives us something to talk about. The Avalanche likely won’t release a roster for training camp for a few weeks, so maybe some additional PTO names pop up before then.

Stay tuned to CHN for updates as they come in.