In the hours after the Colorado Avalanche traded for Casey Mittelstadt, NHL Network analyst Brian Boyle made a pretty profound point when analyzing one of the most fascinating young-player-for-young-player swaps in recent league history.
Boyle said that when the Avalanche practice, Nathan MacKinnon is going to be the first center in every drill, and then Mittelstadt is going to be up next. He went on to talk about how much Mittelstadt’s career could benefit from that.
It turns out Mittelstadt thought of the same thing almost immediately after processing the news that he was leaving the Buffalo Sabres, a team that drafted him No. 8 overall in the 2017 NHL draft but never reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs during his time in Western New York.
“We go against each other at practice all the time and obviously when I’m going against him, I’m going to do the best I can because I don’t want him to make me look stupid,” Mittelstadt said. “I think that part of this is huge for me, and it’s something I’m definitely really excited about. I think it can really help my game.
“Along with him and the other top guys, just watching the way they are and the way they handle themselves, is another thing I’m excited for.”
Through three games of the Avalanche’s opening-round series with Winnipeg, Mittelstadt’s ability to thrive in this environment has been one of the biggest revelations for a Colorado team that has a 2-1 lead on the Jets. Game 4 is Sunday afternoon at Ball Arena.
Mittelstadt earned praise from his coach and teammates after Game 1 — his first taste of the playoff stage. His line played well again in Game 2, with all three guys scoring a goal.
Then Mittelstadt had his best game in an Avs uniform in Game 3, setting up all three of the team’s 5-on-5 goals in a 6-2 rout.
“He’s been unreal,” MacKinnon said. “I just love his competitive level. Yeah, it’s great to see him raise his game on the biggest stage, the brightest lights, and he looked awesome tonight. Not many guys would sauce that over in a third-period playoff game, and it just shows you the confidence and poise he has.”
That “sauce” was an inch-perfect pass to Artturi Lehkonen during a 2-on-2 break and it gave the Avs a 4-2 lead. Mittelstadt held onto the puck until Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck committed to him before flipping it past the defenseman and onto Lehkonen’s stick.
“(He has) turned up his intensity,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “You notice the great pass (to Lehkonen). It’s a skill play, high-skill play. He makes a few other high-skill plays that lead to scoring chances, but I was most impressed with him with his wall work. He’s been heavy and strong on pucks in the D-zone walls and the O-zone walls, guys trying to check him. He’s comfortable with guys playing on his back, reaching around him.
“… He’s a guy that once it’s on his stick, can survey the ice and check off option 1, 2, 3, etc. Then it’s just making the right decision from there. I just think it’s intensity, its excitement to play this time of year, and his game’s gone to a whole new level.”
Mittelstadt had an uneven start to his career with the Sabres. He was one of the best players in Minnesota high school history, then a star for the hometown Gophers in his one season of NCAA hockey.
It didn’t happen for him right away in Buffalo, but the past two seasons have been more like what people expected when he was a top-10 pick. He’s not alone in that. Plenty of young, talented players have struggled to reach their full potential with the Sabres, who have now missed the playoffs for 13 consecutive seasons.
The day the Avs traded for him, Colorado general manager Chris MacFarland said the franchise believed there was more growth in the 25-year-old’s game to come. MacFarland also made it clear the Avs wouldn’t have given up a player like Bo Byram, the No. 4 pick in the 2019 draft and an integral piece of the club’s 2022 Stanley Cup championship run, if they weren’t so high on Mittelstadt as the guy who could be a long-term solution to their No. 2 center shuffle.
Colorado Avalanche center Casey Mittelstadt (37), Zach Parise (9), Samuel Girard (49) and Colorado Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson (42) celebrate Zach Parise’s goal against the Winnipeg Jets in the first period during game three of the first round of the NHL playoffs at Ball Arena in Denver on Friday, April 26, 2024. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post)
“I agree,” Mittelstadt said. “Obviously, there’s a bit of adjustment, but when you have the belief from the coach and staff, that is a big deal for a player, and I think as a player you believe in yourself and you want to be as good as you possibly can be.
“In my case, hockey is the most important thing in my life along with my family, so for me, I want to push and know and have no regrets when I’m done.”
He has a goal and four points in his first three postseason games. The Avs have created 67.63% of the expected goals when he’s on the ice at 5-on-5, per Natural Stat Trick. That’s second on the team.
Like the other three players the Avalanche added just before the deadline, Mittelstadt got off to a fast start in Colorado. And like many of the rest of his new teammates, the final games before the playoffs began were a mixed bag.
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But Mittelstadt’s ability to possess the puck in all three zones of the ice has been clear. He protects it. He makes deft passes in tight spots. And he wins battles.
The hands and the hockey sense were a big part of his reputation before he arrived in Denver. The will to compete with players older, bigger and sometimes stronger than him and the ability to come away from those battles with the puck has been a much-appreciated development for his new coach.
Did Bednar see this level of work along the walls when the Avs were doing their pre-trade dive into Mittelstadt’s game?
“No,” Bednar answered. “I just think it’s … he’s got great hands, right? He’s always got his nose over the puck and he’s always got it in a position to shoot or pass. (He has) great vision and intelligence.
“In order to be able to come up with those pucks and be able to make plays, there has to be a certain level of physicality and determination in your game. That’s what we’re seeing elevate from him right now.”
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