Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche swap veteran defenders
Per sources, #mnwild have acquired #avs left-shot D Ian Cole (#GoIrish) for D Greg Pateryn.
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) January 19, 2021
Cole: 2-time Cup champ with Pens, hard shot, hard-nosed, most importantly, exceptional quote
Pateryn pending UFA ($2.25M AAV); Cole pending UFA ($4.25M AAV, COL retains some salary)
Ian Cole, joining the Wild, is in the final year of a three-season pact that he signed with the Colorado Avalanche in the 2018 off-season, valued at $4.25-million per; Greg Pateryn, joining the Avalanche, is in the final third of his own three-year deal, signed on the same day, and valued at $2.25-million. Both numbers are courtesy of our partners at CapFriendly.
The motivation for Colorado is obvious. They're clearing cap some cap space, adding right-shot depth, and making room for Bowen Byram's arrival on the scene. If Byram's play at the 2021 World Juniors is any indication -- he's ready.
[Read more: Ranking the NHL’s Best Prospects, Skaters 25-1]
Ian Cole, acquired by MIN, is a 3rd-pairing defensive defenceman who was a surprise analytical darling in a very limited role for the Avalanche last season. He's very solid in his own end but extremely undisciplined. #MNWild pic.twitter.com/bOPiny76sk
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) January 19, 2021
Minnesota, meanwhile, gets the better of this exchange by landing Cole; better still, Russo's report suggests the Avs are going to retain some of his salary. Best-case scenario, Cole supplants Carson Soucy on the Wild's third-pair, and the team is all the better for it. Depending on how the next few weeks and months go, Cole just might command a worthwhile bounty of futures for the Wild at the deadline, too.
The landscape of the NHL hasn't drastically shifted, but both Minnesota and Colorado come out of this trade in better shape than they were going into the day. It's a rare win-win hockey trade.
