Dater On Avalanche

Dater On Avalanche

My Crybaby Hibernation is Over: Notes from the Offseason

I'm kinda over Game 7 by now...

Pat Salvas's avatar
Pat Salvas
Jun 23, 2025
∙ Paid
So many questions in one picture… and the best d-man in the world.

It’s been a while.

Honestly, I needed to step away. Game 7 in Dallas crushed me for longer than I care to admit.

I told myself I’d take a couple of days, collect myself, and write something about yet another heartbreaking loss to the Stars… but I couldn’t. I tried again a few days later, but was still too pissed to properly articulate my thoughts. I was too upset, too immature to get over it that soon after. Not even so much that it was Mikko who put the dagger in us with that third period — yeah, that sucked, though — but more so because it meant Dallas was moving on again. And somehow, Matt Duchene was, too.

That part, I think, was the worst of all.

People at work didn’t believe me when I said I wasn’t mad about Mikko. But I meant it then and I mean it now months later. He was going to re-sign, and if he had, we wouldn’t have had the cap flexibility to fix the real issues. We’re already in a tight spot without carrying his $12M+ figure. The Avs made the best of the situation, in my opinion. Chris MacFarland did his job, got assets, created room, gave us a chance to plug other holes. He can’t control what Carolina does, or that Mikko ends up back in the Central. It’s unfortunate, but not on Colorado.

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A guest post by
Pat Salvas
Lifelong Nordiques-turned-Avalanche fan living in New Hampshire.
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