Avalanche’s Necas Making Good Impression After Rantanen Trade

Necas tallied two points (both assists) over his first two games with the Avalanche, and boasts a full-season ledger of 16 goals, 41 assists, and 57 points in 51 games, representing an 82-game pace of 26 goals, 66 assists, and 92 points, the latter two of which would be career-highs for the native of Czechia.

Necas led all Avalanche forwards with just under 45 minutes in all situations over the first two games of the post-Rantanen era, including a team-leading 5:53 on the power play. Necas posted a team-worst minus-4 rating over the two games, but his rustiness could be excused by having no time to adjust to his new team and playing the day immediately after being traded.

Head coach Jared Bednar slotted Necas into Rantanen’s old spot beside MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin on the new-look first line, and the trio dominated possession in the weekend’s games against the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers.

With that line on the ice at five-on-five, the Avalanche out-shot the opposition 23-12, won the scoring chance battle by a 22-8 margin, and tallied nine high-danger opportunities for to four against according to Natural Stat Trick. They were outscored 3-1, but don’t expect that trend to continue for the rest of the season if the underlying numbers are any indication.

Hurricanes Making Big Bet with Necas for Rantanen Trade

The Hurricanes have been close to ascending to the championship summit during the half-decade and change, advancing to at least the second round of the NHL playoffs in five of the past six postseasons. They have made it to the Eastern Conference Final on two of those occasions (2019 and 2023), but were swept both times.

:

Only five teams have won more playoff games since the Hurricanes broke their nine-year playoff drought in 2019, with each of the teams ahead of them making at least one appearance in the Stanley Cup Final over that time. The Florida Panthers (seventh), Edmonton Oilers (ninth), St. Louis Blues (10th), and the Montreal Canadiens (13th) have all won fewer playoff games than Carolina since 2019, but all four franchises have made at least one appearance in the championship series. The organization has been one of the most forward-thinking groups over the past decade, but have yet to reap the rewards of their process.

It’s entirely possible that Rantanen does not re-sign with the Hurricanes and they gave up a budding star in Necas for nothing. Yet, given that capitalizing on their territorial dominance has long been a weakness of the roster, adding one of the league’s top finishers is a gamble that general manager Eric Tulsky had to make.

Avalanche Looking Towards Future with Necas Acquisition

Necas’ contract status ($6.5 million cap hit through next season) made him an appealing target for the Avalanche front office. He’s young enough to fit nicely with Colorado’s current core, and offers a different profile from the slower, shoot-first Rantanen.

The Gabriel Landeskog injury situation hovers over all, and his $7 million cap hit looms large if he were to return during the regular season. The Avalanche would need to have the room to activate him from long-term injured reserve which likely would have resulted in a major move even if Rantanen was not involved.

The move creates some cap room and opens up new possibilities to re-shape the roster at the trade deadline. This trade has the potential to eat at the Avalanche for years to come, but they have to feel confident that they made the most of a difficult situation.

Data courtesy of Natural Stat Trick and the NHL.