Keeler: Nazem Kadri just made Dallas see Stars. Time for Avalanche to bring a Stanley Cup hero home.
No more Mr. Naz Guy. I mean, did you see those Stars late Tuesday night, Chris MacFarland?
No, no, no. Not the ones skating in Calgary. The ones circling around Lian Bichsel’s head after he messed around with Nazem Kadri.
While the Avalanche were taking a chainsaw to Anaheim, Kadri got busy trying to re-arrange Bichsel’s central incisors. It was glorious.
About five minutes into the second stanza at the Scotiabank Saddledome, Bichsel, Dallas’ 6-foot-7 defenseman, pushed Kadri into the boards behind the net. Naz retaliated with his right elbow. As you do.
The two danced into the crease. Bichsel shoved the 6-foot Kadri, against whom he’s got an advantage of 7 inches in height and 46 pounds in weight, twice — until they were past the right post.
Naz had enough. He landed a left jab on the big lug’s jaw. Then a right cross with stick still in hand. The Swiss D-man dropped a quick 1-2 on Kadri’s head before a pack closed in to separate the pair.
Seven inches.
Forty-six pounds.
Ain’t the size of the dog in the fight.
It’s the size of the fight in the dawg.
Go get that dawg, Chris.
The NHL trade deadline expires just after lunch on Friday. As of late Wednesday afternoon, MacFarland, the Avs’ general manager, was still looking for a third-line or second-line center. And Kadri — one of the heroes of Colorado’s 2022 Stanley Cup champions, Denver’s favorite “bad” cop — was looking to join a playoff team again.
“We’ve had internal chats,” Kadri told NHL.com last month when asked about his trade stock.
“Obviously, those we’ll keep private, but, yeah, we’ve had discussions and communicated. I think that’s what makes it great, is having that open line of conversation and just being able to understand where everybody’s at.”
Kadri is 35 and on the fourth season of a seven-year, $49-million deal on a team going nowhere. The Avs (41-10-9) are the best team in the NHL.
They’re also in a heck of a position to get this generational core of MacKinnon-Makar-Landeskog another summer parade. If, of course, they can patch up some holes before the trade window shuts tight.
“Because other teams are doing the same. So if you don’t change, then you may fall behind,” Avs defenseman Josh Manson told me recently. “Obviously, it’s a risk upsetting (locker room) culture or whatever it may be. But I think you always have to be trying to fine-tune.
“And that’s up to management. I think (they’ll make) the best decision for our team moving forward because, at the end of the day, I think it reflects on them the most. Besides how the players and the way they play, how the team and what’s been assembled reflects on them.”
To that end, Kadri the player ticks a whole bunch of boxes. He’s physical. He’s scrappy. He’s clever. He’s persistent. He’s stubborn. He’s not just a pest. He’s a skilled pest.
Yeah, but …
Sure, Kadri’s scoring (41 points in 60 games as of Wednesday morning) is down from last season’s pace. But his face-off win percentage (47.9) is up, and a better clip than Parker Kelly (36.3), Ross Colton (46.2) and Gavin Brindley (38.2) have been producing to date.
Yeah, but …
Naz also hasn’t missed a regular-season game since leaving Denver as a free agent four summers ago.
Yeah, but …
I know, I know.
It’s … not … ideal. PuckPedia.com said Wednesday that the Avs had $10.8 million in “trade deadline” cap space to play with. But three more seasons left on the books for Kadri, at $7 million per year? Woof.
Basically, if you’re the Avs, you’d be paying for the back end, and probably the worst end, of a deal the Kroenkes weren’t willing to give Naz three years ago — at the peak of his value. Unless someone else is willing to help offset those costs, that’s a tricky needle to thread for a 35-year-old forward.
Especially because Cale Makar is about to get paid. The best D-man in the world is eligible for an extension on July 1. And the next one should be a doozy, a deal that’s expected to hike his cap number from $9 million this season to $18 million or $19 million going forward. The eye of that needle shrinks by the day.
Still, a team with a 30-year-old Nathan MacKinnon, a 33-year-old Landeskog, a 34-year-old Brock Nelson, a 34-year-old Manson and a 40-year-old Brent Burns has kind of already laid its cards out for everyone to see. Whatever chips you’ve got left, you’re pushing them to the center of the table.
When he’s right, Naz is as chippy as they come. Remember 2022? The March To Lord Stanley is an HBO spin-off series in and off itself. To produce enough episodes to get you to June, you need compelling villains or anti-heroes who relish the smoke and keep the narrative moving.
It takes a village to win a Cup. Every series is a self-contained storyline waiting for someone to grasp the spotlight.
Four springs ago, Naz grabbed it by the thorax. If the ’22 playoffs were a “Game of Thrones” arc, Kadri was The Avs’ Sandor Clegane, Denver’s Hound.
Jordan Binnington. Water bottles. Threats. Sweet revenge. They don’t get over the line without him. Or beat the Lightning in Game 4 of those Finals on that Florida slush pond.
According to longtime NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, Kadri has 13 teams on his no-trade list. Colorado isn’t believed to be one of them.
“I mean, you want to try and be as deep as you possibly can going into this (postseason), right? ” Avs coach Jared Bednar reflected late last month. “We like the guys we have. They’re all doing a great job, no question. If we can get deeper, stronger in certain positions, then I’m sure C-Mac and Joe (Sakic) and their staff will try and do that.”
Kadri has put up 11 points and four goals over his last 10 games vs. the Stars. Let that dawg in. Let him eat. In these playoffs, Naz Guys get the silverware. Nice Guys go home.
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