Even 24 hours later it is hard to judge the trade of Kyle Quincey for Steve Downie.
It is great that the Avs got a gritty forward who can be annoying as crap and get under people's skin. Downie will not add a whole lot of scoring or even points, but he will add a lot intensity.
On the nights where the Avs just don't have any energy or intensity (like Sunday in Winnipeg) Downie will provide. Whether it is a fight or a hit or just a good play in the corner, Downie will provide that.
With him, the Avs won't be as (forgive the pun) downey-soft. They will have a guy who is aggressive and intense.
Intensity has a downside, however, as Downie has a suspension history and a penchant for taking penalties at the wrong time, not unlike Shane O'Brien. Downie might be the forward version of O'Brien for this team and that signing has turned out well for them.
The Avs really needed a guy who teams hate to play against, they really have not had one like Downie since Ian Laperriere left the team three years ago. Matt Hendricks and Cody McLeod have tried but A) they have not been given the minutes Lapierre did and B) they are not even close to the player Lappy was.
Something that can't be understated from this trade is that it enables the return of Stefan Elliott and opens up a spot for Cameron Gaunce in the near future. Since being sent down, Elliott put up three goals, two assists, a plus-1 rating and 20 shots on net in eight games.
Elliott is not challenged enough at the AHL level and the best way for him to learn will be at the NHL level. He has his confidence back and now he is back with the big club where they missed his wrist shot from the point. The Avs tried Tyson Barrie and found him still rough around the edges and, in the two games without Barrie and Elliott, they found they need an offensive spark on defense the two provide.
Getting Elliott back up will not only help him but also the Avs.
On the other side, Gaunce is shaping up to be a 4-6 defenseman with grit and good, solid positioning. In 53 games this season, Gaunce has three goals, 18 assists. Not great numbers but when you factor in his plus-15 rating on a team that has given up 17 more goals than it has scored, those are good numbers.
Gaunce is a lot like O'Brien: a physical-type defenseman who plays with an edge. He will stand up to players, fight if needed and play good positional defense. When he was drafted in the second round of the 2008 entry draft he needed to work on his skating. Now that he can skate faster, he is a much better player.
Losing Quincey is a loss that can be made up both now by O'Brien and Wilson (if he can find his game again) and in the future by Gaunce or Duncan Siemens. The Avs have depth on defense through their drafting but very little in the way of forward depth.
With Downie they have more grit, depth and intensity. If he can temper his game and play smart hockey, limit the stupid penalties, he could be a good addition.
It would have been nice to get one of Tampa's second or third round picks for Quincey and it is unfortunate that Quincey was flipped back to Detroit, where he will probably fit in perfectly but the trade of Downie and Quincey could be good for the Avs.
As with every trade there are a lot of ifs but the Avs have been right on Erik Johnson, Jay McClement, Tomas Fleischmann, Peter Mueller, Shane O'Brien and Jean-Sebastien Giguere so they will get a smidgen of leeway on this one. Sure, Matt Hunwick hasn't turned out and Semyon Varlamov is streaky but for the most part, the Avs' scouts have done a great job talent scouting.
It will just take time to see if they got this one right as well.
Colorado Avalanche Blogger • 
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