The Avalanche have revamped their goaltending duo by acquiring Mackenzie Blackwood from San Jose. The Sharks picked up Alexandar Georgiev in the trade, but he is likely to eventually be a mentor for the up-and-coming Yaroslav Askarov, who is expected to be the Sharks’ goalie of the future.
Here are some players for whom you might want to deal or trade elsewhere.
TRADE FOR
Mackenzie Blackwood, G, Avalanche (48% rostered)
The Avalanche made their second trade for a goaltender in nine days Monday, picking up Blackwood and Givani Smith (along with a couple of draft picks) for Alexandar Georgiev and forward Nikolai Kovalenko and a 2027 fifth-round selection. Colorado now has Blackwood as their top netminder with Scott Wedgewood as his backup, a far superior duo to Georgiev and Justus Annunen, who went to Nashville in the Wedgewood trade.
Blackwood had success as a 22-year-old with the Devils back in 2019-20, going 22-14-8 with three shutouts, a 2.77 GAA and a .915 save percentage. While he has floundered since then, possibly due to injuries, Blackwood played well this season under trying circumstances with a weak San Jose team, going 6-9-3 with a 3.00 GAA and a .909 save percentage, far superior to what Georgiev put up with the Avalanche. He should hit the 75% mark in being rostered quickly, so you may need to trade for him, if need be.
Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Blackwood, Brenden Dillon and a seventh-round pick for Alexandar Georgiev, Mathieu Olivier and a fourth-round pick.
Mika Zibanejad, C, Rangers (86% rostered)
Zibanejad is having a terrible year by his standards with only five goals and 20 points in 27 games. He has been bouncing back of late, as he saw his four-game point streak come to an end Monday in a 2-1 loss to Chicago. Zibanejad is producing on the power play with a goal and five helpers. He has averaged 81.3 points per game over the last three years in a Rangers uniform, and while he may not get to that level this season, he should still average a point a game the rest of the way.
Example of a completed deal from the Yahoo Trade Market: Zibanejad for Chris Kreider.
Luke Hughes, D, Devils (44% rostered)
Hughes started the season off on injured reserve with a shoulder injury that cost him the first nine games of the season. He had only two assists in his first 13 games but he has come on…