When the Avalanche acquired veterans Brock Nelson and Charlie Coyle at the 2025 trade deadline, superstar Nathan MacKinnon shared a poignant belief.

“I really don’t think you can win with young players,” he said.

The same thing happened this year when the organization brought in Nicolas Roy and Nazem Kadri. The Avalanche have not hesitated to go all in the past few years, loading up on veterans to try to win another Stanley Cup.

Putting all the blame on that approach would be a reductive way of looking at things, but it appears the Avalanche will try a different route next season.

“These guys are gonna get games and they should get games. They’re ready for games,” Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic said of their young forwards.

This wouldn’t be the first time the Avalanche have attempted this approach. They began the 2024-25 campaign with two rookies in their top six up front. That was more out of necessity due to injury and suspension issues to start the year. This coming season, it appears giving young players a shot is the plan.

As things stand, the Avalanche have just under $1.3 million in cap space with a 21-man roster. There’s room to add someone late in the summer if there are any free agent stragglers willing to sign for league minimum, but Sakic seems content to bank cap space until the trade deadline. Unless something changes, there are at least two forward spots up for grabs for youngsters in camp.

If they want to make their deadline any easier, developing one or more of these young forwards into full-time NHL players they can trust is necessary for the health of the organization in the present and future.

Acquired from Nashville last month, Fedor Svechkov and Zachary L’Heureux have a leg up on the competition. Both are 23, have NHL experience and would have to pass through waivers to get to the AHL. While it’s no guarantee they’d get snagged by another NHL team, the Avalanche losing either of them for nothing so soon after acquiring them wouldn’t look good.

Sakic seems excited about both, saying Svechkov has some similarities in his game with the man he was traded for, Jack Drury. He’s discussed the energy and edge that L’Heureux plays with, noting it’s something the Avalanche could have used in the postseason. It helps that both gained experience killing penalties on a surprisingly good Nashville penalty kill, with L’Heureux averaging nearly two minutes per game on the kill in his NHL time last season.

When injuries hit or if those players struggle, the organization has other players they can lean into. Gavin Brindley spent most of last season in the NHL and is eager to get back. Taylor Makar has shown marked improvement since turning pro. T.J. Hughes hit the ground running after signing out of Michigan this spring. The Avalanche have options and might need them given the injury history of some of their veteran wingers.

Sure, the Avalanche could trade picks and prospects to fill those holes with veterans. It’s a guarantee they’ll get help at some point next season. Developing some of these young forwards into NHL players would make their lives a heck of a lot easier, though. Wouldn’t it be nice to save those trade assets for a bigger swing, whether it be a top-six forward or top-four defender?

The idea you can only win with veterans has been proven wrong. Carolina’s top point producer in the postseason was a 22-year-old, and its leading goal scorer was 23. Florida won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the now-24-year-old Anton Lundell anchoring its third line. And when the Avalanche won in 2022, they did so with 20-year-olds Bowen Byram and Alex Newhook eating important minutes. Young players sprinkled in among a veteran group is a proven recipe for success, especially in the salary cap world.

No one is expecting the young forwards to become stars in Colorado. They just need them to become valuable contributors at the NHL level. Developing another Logan O’Connor or your own Jack Drury can go a long way in this league.

The veterans are in place for this team to win now, but coach Jared Bednar and his staff developing some of these young forwards into NHL players over the first few months of the season should be a priority. It would make Sakic’s job a lot easier come the trade deadline.