Colorado Avalanche sign former first round pick on Day 2 of free agency

According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Colorado Avalanche have reached an agreement on terms for a one-year contract worth $900,000 with former Vegas Golden Knights first round pick Erik Brannstrom.

Brannstrom, 24, was traded from Vegas to Ottawa in early 2019 as part of the return in the Mark Stone deal. He never hit his full potential in Ottawa and after parts of six seasons in the organization, the Senators decided that they weren't going to issue him a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent on Monday.

The Eksjo, Sweden native set new career highs in goals, assists and points with the Senators last season and could be a solid depth piece for Colorado next year. In 76 games, Brannstrom had 20 points (three goals, 17 assists), 36 penalty minutes and was a plus-five.

It's going to be interesting to see how Colorado makes their salary cap situation work ahead of the 2024-25 season. On Monday, Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli pointed out that they only had $300,000 in cap space, but now after the Brannstrom signing, that's gone down to -$600,000.

Brannstrom will probably play a third pairing role for the Avalanche to begin the 2024-25 season, but if Colorado is able to unlock the potential Brannstrom had when drafted this could become a steal.

Source: Blade of Steel
Colorado Avalanche land former first round pick in free agency