The Colorado Avalanche made another round of reassignments, sending down three players to join their AHL affiliate in Cleveland, the Lake Erie Monsters.
Defenseman Cameron Gaunce (2nd round, 2008) has been reassigned after a strong camp, and will likely be one of the first players to rejoin the club in case of injury -- as he did in the second half of last season.
Defenseman Jonas Holos (6th round, 2008) will also be heading to AHL Lake Erie. The Norwegian was with the Avalanche for much of last season, but it appears the new wave of young defensemen has passed him up. His future with the club remains uncertain, and he may decide to head back to Norway.
Forward Ryan Stoa (2nd round, 2005) has once again failed to make an impression on the coaching staff. Selected 10 spots before current Colorado star Paul Stastny, Stoa is an impressive physical specimen. His lack of any NHL production has limited his playing time, and he appears to also be on his last chance with the team.
Forwards like Brad Malone, Kevin Porter, and Patrick Bordeleau remain with the club after this latest round of cuts, suggesting that their strong play is giving them plenty of consideration for the Opening Night roster. Rookie defensemen Tyson Barrie and Stefan Elliott will also remain with the club for now -- and the Jan Hejda injury has potentially opened up a roster spot for one of these two rookies to skip directly from the WHL into the NHL on Opening Night.
With 31 players currently on the roster, the Avalanche will have to reassign eight more players before the start of the season.