Nearly three weeks prior to the Feb. 25 NHL trade deadline, the Avalanche is inching towards becoming a vendor and adding on for its glorious 2019 draft portfolio.

Colorado’s goaltending has been below average, the group ’s defensive lapses continue together with frequency and trainer Jared Bednar says he’s tried every ahead blend from the “planet” to generating scoring beyond the MGM Line. In all aspects of the game, the Avs are trending down, winners of seven of the last 10 games following Saturday’s 5-1 pummeling from the Vancouver Canucks in the Pepsi Center.

The Canucks built a 4-1 lead and leapfrogged that the Avs for its eighth and final Western Conference playoff place. It s too early to abandoned a second consecutive playoff appearance to the Avs, but they have to win 22 of the 31 matches to arrive.

That doesn’t appear possible, given that Colorado has won just three of its final 16 games.

Very good news isthe Avs have two first-round selections in the draft, along with five in the first three rounds. Besides their own, they own the first- and – third-round selections of the Ottawa Senators, who have an NHL-low 43 points along with figure for a high-percentage, draft-lottery competitor. So there’therefore a decent opportunity Ottawa “wins” the lottery to permit the Avs to select 17-year-old American center Jack Hughes, who’s the overwhelming favourite to go No. 1.

If Colorado wasn’t within this large slump and winning just like it did in October and November, a draft pick or 2 might lure exactly what the team desperately needs from the trade deadline. However, the Avs’ issues go beyond a second-line center and/or a power forward. They need help in three places, or at the very least a center and a goalie, which ’s they’ll probably be patient and hang on to their draft selections and possibly acquire more.

Who can be traded on sweeten the 2019 draft portfolio? Colorado’s only impending unrestricted free agents (rentals) are forwards Colin Wilson and Gabriel Bourque along with defenseman Patrik Nemeth along with goalie Semyon Varlamov. Nemeth is the most attractive potential rental however, the yield would be a late-round draft pick.

Defenseman Tyson Barrie is the man who might bring the Avs another first-round draft pick, while also decreasing the group ’s wages construction while it attempts to step forward Mikko Rantanen, J.T. Compher along with Alex Kerfoot along with defenseman Nikita Zadorov and also look for a free-agent splash July 1.

Barrie is the Avs’ next highest-paid blue-liner who’s under contract in $5.5 million through next season. He’s valuable — quarterbacking that the No. 1 power play and often logging the most minutes on the team. However, for a team, he s expendable because Cale Makar could start playing the exact identical role whenever his season finishes in the University of Massachusetts.

Much like Barrie, Makar — that the No. 4 pick of the 2017 draft — is a super-skilled, right-shot defenseman. The Avs could adapt both players however, the hope is that offender right-shot/skilled defenseman Conor Timmins recovers from signs he’s had. Makar and Timmins (next circular, No. 32 overall) have been Colorado’s first two selections from the 2017 draft.

The Avs have 11 matches and three weeks to think about the trade deadline. My guess is they’ll add to what already is going to be a draft.

Coach Jared Bednar following 5-1 loss to Vancouver #Avs //t.co/AUXOU59FwQ

— Mike Chambers (@MikeChambers) February 3, 2019

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