The Colorado Avalanche found themselves at a crossroads at the trade deadline. The Avs had been the best team in the league over the course of the season, but injuries to the forward corps had made the margins a little tighter on their lead in the Stanley Cup Playoffs race. So, the Avalanche added, and while a reunion with Nazem Kadri didn't initially seem likely at the deadline after the team traded for Nicolas Roy, the Flames did right by the 35 year old center and sent him to Colorado for a package of Avs future draft picks.
Since then, Kadri has had to play up and down the Avalanche's lineup, as injuries and a new mix of players have led to Jared Bednar shaking up his forward lines, trying to find the right mix for their final playoff push. Kadri has 9 points in his 14 games back in Colorado, with 4 goals and 5 assists, even as he's had to be flexed outside to the left wing, including on the top line.
While Kadri's stint on the top line was short lived, the grizzled vet vet has seemingly settled back into his old stomping grounds without too much of an acclimation period. Certainly, having familiar faces like Nathan MacKinnon and Gabe Landeskog have helped things with that department.
In a matchup with his old team, Kadri accounted for two of the Avs nine goals on the night, which probably stung twice as much since Calgary is still paying a good chunk of his salary. Kadri has had a point or more in half of his games back in Colorado and should now be settled back in as the team's third line center. With Kadri, the spine of the Avs' offense is top to bottom one of the best in the league.
With Kadri and Roy, the Avs have two solid players who can center the third line or flex out to wing to grind down opponents while still providing plenty of scoring touch in the bottom half of the lineup. In Kadri's case, he's already shown the ability to move up in the lineup too, providing some value that not all Avs fans may have expected.