Avalanche Bring Back Depth Forward For One More Year

Barring a value signing late in the summer, it wouldn’t surprise me if the Colorado Avalanche are done making moves until at least training camp.

On Friday night, the Avalanche announced they had re-signed forward Jason Polin to a one-year contract. Polin signed as a free agent out of college last summer after leading all of the NCAA in goals, scoring 30 in his final season at Western Michigan University. That scoring didn’t really transition to the pro ranks, as he picked up just four goals and 10 points in 42 games with the Colorado Eagles.

Polin might have actually looked better in the NHL than the AHL. When he was up with the Avalanche, he played with energy, was physical, and was pretty responsible defensively. Back on Jan. 16, Polin scored his first career NHL goal against the Ottawa Senators. He ended up playing seven games with Colorado before being sent back to spend the rest of the season with the Eagles.

As of right now, the Avalanche have 23 forwards signed to NHL contracts for the upcoming season. That includes Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin, who are still question marks at this point in the summer. They’ll likely round out the rest of the lineup for the Eagles with AHL contracts. Calum Ritchie signing an NHL contract might be one more move that is on the horizon, but there’s no guarantee he plays a role with the Avalanche next season.

Stay tuned to CHN for any additional moves the team makes over the summer.