Jimmy Vesey was one of the odd-men out for the Colorado Avalanche this season. He was acquired during the trade in February that brought Ryan Lindgren and Hank Kempf to the organization. The trade sent Jusso Parssinen, Calvin de Haan and two draft picks to the New York Rangers.

As the Rangers started to slip and fell to the bottom of the Metropolitan Division, Vesey was still not playing much. Part of this was because of multiple injuries and part of it was roster decisions by their head coach. Vesey could not find much of a stride in New York before the trade and only had four goals and two assists. Vessy would only play 33 games for the Rangers before the trade.

After coming to Colorado, Vesey found it hard to get into the lineup in Denver too. The former Harvard alum only played 10 games for the Avalanche. He would only tally one goal and one assist with the Avalanche. Vesey would fill in on the bottom-six if a center or winger needed a day off.

The Hobey Baker Award winner has become a player not of skill, but one of defensive play. Vesey played roles on the penalty kill for the Avalanche, giving a threat to score short-handed. He can push the play out of the defensive zone and through the neutral zone. This is something that the Avalanche struggled with throughout the entire season. Because the Avalanche face salary cap concerns, Vesey could provide a much-needed veteran presence in the locker room for a long playoff run next season.

Jimmy Vesey will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He might re-sign with the Colorado Avalanche for under one million dollars for a one-year contract. This would give the option for third and fourth line players to take a game off every once in a while.