Parker Kelly may have been an unknown when he joined the Avalanche last summer, but there was a reason he got a multi-year contract on day one of free agency. Now, just four games from the regular season’s end, the fourth-line forward is delivering exactly as promised.
Kelly, who played parts of four seasons with the Ottawa Senators, is set to make his Stanley Cup playoff debut in two weeks as a key piece of the Avalanche’s fourth line. His grittiness, mixed with a relentless work ethic and physicality, are the types of qualities that thrive in the postseason.