The Colorado Avalanche traded Ian Cole to the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday, with Greg Pateryn heading to Denver. Thanks to the move, the Avs gained some much needed cap space, and gave a big vote of confidence to the young defensemen on their depth chart. Although we saw the Avs trade Ian Cole, this is about much more than him, and Pateryn coming back.
With Cole out of the picture, Colorado will turn to Conor Timmins, aged 22 and Bowen Byram, 19, to replace the minutes lost by this move. In a year where the Avs are expected to contend for the cup, it is a huge vote of confidence for those two youngsters.