The Colorado Avalanche were one of the most active teams Monday, making it perfectly clear they're making a push for the playoffs this season.
The Avalanche surprised many when they emerged out of nowhere to acquire forward Mikkel Boedker from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for Alex Tanguay and prospects Conner Bleackley and Kyle Wood.
Related: Coyotes trade Boedker to Avalanche for Tanguay, 2 prospects
Moments later, they filled an important need on the blue line by landing defenseman Eric Gelinas from the New Jersey Devils for a third-round pick.
For Avs fans wondering: Eric Gelinas is a good skater for his size, has a cannon of a shot. Prone to the big mistake & not overly physical.
— Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell) February 29, 2016
The Avalanche were certainly in an interesting position heading into Monday's trade deadline. Standing pat appeared to be a very likely option for a team not quite ready to compete with the Chicago Blackhawks, Dallas Stars, and St. Louis Blues in the Central Division this season. However, for a young core lacking big-game experience, general manager Joe Sakic evidently felt a crack at the postseason was too good to pass up.
Sitting two points up on the Minnesota Wild for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference, the aforementioned moves will certainly provide a gigantic boost for a team on the playoff bubble with just 18 games remaining in the regular season.
The #Avalanche, who were the second-oldest team in the NHL, get a little younger with 26-year old Mikkel Boedker for Tanguay. #TradeDeadline
— Steve Mears (@MearsyNHL) February 29, 2016
Adding Boedker - a pending unrestricted free agent - definitely came at a hefty price, but Sakic made it clear that a run to the postseason over the final five weeks outweighed the long-term gain Bleackley and Wood may have provided down the road.
With a very skilled young core of Nathan MacKinnon, Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, and Tyson Barrie, as well as highly touted prospects Mikko Rantanen, Mikhail Grigorenko, and Nikita Zadorov, it's evident Colorado is primed for a bright future one way or another, even without the two outgoing prospects in the mix.
Their time may not be now, and Boedker may very well walk on July 1, but playoff experience could pay major dividends later on for the team's youngsters.
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The NHL's lowest-scoring team was shut out for the sixth time this season Friday, as the New Jersey Devils lost a costly division game 1-0 to the New York Islanders.
Related: Islanders' Halak shuts out Devils to start 7-game road trip
A win would have brought the Devils into a tie for third in the Metropolitan Division, but they instead remain a point behind the Pittsburgh Penguins - who have three games in hand on New Jersey - for the final Eastern Conference wild-card position.
"It seems like everyone's winning around us," forward Travis Zajac said, per NJ.com. "We've got to find a way to get points. We have a chance to get back at it tomorrow going into a tough building. We've played well against good teams."
Despite another stellar performance from goalie Cory Schneider, who allowed just one goal for the third time in his last four starts, the Devils' inability to score continues to haunt them; they have not scored four goals in a game since Jan. 21.
The road won't get easier for the Devils, as they'll look to avoid a third consecutive divisional loss Saturday against the league-best Washington Capitals, who they've failed to beat in their two previous meetings this season.
"It's tough. We have to bounce back after this and put a string together and get ourselves right back in the race," forward Reid Boucher added. "I think we'll bounce back."
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