The Colorado Avalanche made its first trade of the season, moving on from defender Ilya Solovyov. In return, the Avs got Valtteri Puustinen and a 2026 7th-round pick from the Pittsburgh Penguins.

We have acquired Valtteri Puustinen and Pittsburgh's own 7th Round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft in exchange for Ilya Solovyov.

— Colorado Avalanche (@avalanche.bsky.social) 2026-01-20T18:45:12.977Z

Saying goodbye to Solovyov

Solovyov’s time in Colorado is over before it even really started. The Belarusian defender was picked up on waivers from the Calgary Flames before the start of the season.

He played in only 16 games, recording a goal and two assists. Others often replaced him in the lineup when they were healthy, and he was not a top choice. There was a stretch of time where he didn’t play for over a month, before being reassigned to the Colorado Eagles on a conditioning stint.

Solovyov had been in the lineup more recently because of an injury with Devon Toews, sidelining him for some time. His best stretches in burgundy and blue came recently, in three games against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Ottawa Senators, and Columbus Blue Jackets.

In those stretches of games, he had at least one point and was getting noticed. He recorded his first career NHL goal against Columbus. It was enough to attract attention from the Penguins, where he’ll now slot in on their blue line.

Solovyov will return to Colorado on March 16 after the trade deadline. In the meantime, Colorado will probably need to call up a defender to fill his spot until Toews returns from injury. It’s likely the call-up may be Jack Ahcan.

Saying hello to Puustinen

Meanwhile, the player Colorado is receiving from Pittsburgh is Valtteri Puustinen. He is a 26-year-old Finnish forward who, in 66 career NHL games, has seven goals and 17 assists. He hasn’t played for the Pens since the 2024–25 season.

This season with their AHL-affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, he has seven goals and 19 assists in 35 games. The right-shooting forward will probably feature in the AHL for the Colorado Eagles. However, his performance this year might result in a call-up.

Valtteri Puustinen goes top shelf to extend the @wbspenguins.bsky.social lead in #WBSvsBEL⬆️

— American Hockey League (@theahl.com) 2025-01-11T01:08:01.419Z

His best season came in the 2022–23 season with WBS, with 24 goals and 35 assists for 59 points in 72 games. Puustinen could be in Colorado as soon as Wednesday, should he feature in the Avs’ matchup against the Anaheim Ducks.

Colorado’s defensive depth took a hit, but there’s another forward and draft capital in the system. Colorado now has nine picks in the 2026 NHL Draft, with four coming in the seventh-round.