DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche made two more trades on deadline day to give themselves even more depth. One place that the Avalanche have been struggling all season long has been in bottom-six scoring. A player that has been on the trade board all season has been Casey Mittelstadt. The Avalanche have been trying to get suitors all season long but could not nail one down. This morning, Colorado finally found a suitor and could get rid of a depth player from the Colorado Eagles that had not been playing much. Here is how the day fared out for the Avalanche after the big trade last night for Brock Nelson.

Casey Mittelstadt heads out East

The Boston Bruins have not been having the greatest season this year. There was a lot of interest for players throughout their roster. The biggest thing that the Avalanche have been lacking has been grit and Charlie Coyle provides that for them. He brings a heavy game to the third line and can add some scoring ability too. Coyle has 22 points (15g/7a) to Mittelstadt’s 34 (11g/23a). Coyle has more than twice as many games in the NHL (931) compared to Mittelstadt (420). The now former Bruin also has 119 games of playoff experience to Mittelstadt’s 11 games. Avalanche prospect William Zellers (drafted in the 2024 Entry Draft, round 3 #76 overall by Colorado) along with a 2025 second-round pick will head to Boston. Besides Coyle, the Avalanche will receive a 2026 fifth round pick.

The Condor flies back home

Fan favorite Erik Johnson is heading home in a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers. Less than an hour before the deadline, the Avalanche traded Givani Smith for former Avalanche Erik Johnson. The 2022 Stanley Cup Champion had previously played 717 games over 13 seasons for the Avalanche before departing to the Buffalo Sabres in free agency. Johnson will provide a veteran presence on the bottom pairing and a big body. The team assigned Smith to the Colorado Eagles, where he remained a healthy scratch since February 11.

What this means

The Avalanche are a deeper team after the moves today. They will have bigger bodies and a lot more veteran leadership in the locker room. Colorado will certainly benefit from the addition of Coyle and Johnson not just on the ice, but as voices on the bench. Both players have been alternate captains before and that is something that the Avalanche need at the moment. If anything, bringing back Johnson will tug at your heartstrings a bit too.