Now that he has been cleared from injury, Alex Galchenyuk has signed an AHL contract with the Colorado Eagles, according to Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets. The veteran forward was in Colorado Avalanche camp on a professional tryout when he suffered the injury, and head coach Jared Bednar had told reporters at the time that he expected him back with the organization at some point.
An AHL deal will allow the 28-year-old to get back up to speed in the minor leagues and try to prove he deserves another NHL deal, a path he has taken before. In 2021, after clearing waivers with the Carolina Hurricanes, Galchenyuk was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs, who stuck him in the minor leagues to “rebuild” his game. After six excellent appearances with the Toronto Marlies – the only AHL games of his career – Galchenyuk was back up and a regular in the Toronto lineup.
Last season, he scored 21 points in 60 games with the Arizona Coyotes, and headed into the offseason looking for a new opportunity. It seemed like Colorado could be the perfect place, given how much depth they lost at the forward position, but an injury robbed him of the chance. Now, with the Avalanche dealing with injuries upfront, perhaps there will be a new opening for him to reclaim his place as an NHLer.
It is unlikely that Galchenyuk ever returns to the 30-goal scorer he was as a young player in Montreal but perhaps he can carve out a new role as a reliable secondary scoring option deeper in the lineup. He’ll have to prove it for the Eagles first.
Nice low-risk signing to try to restart his career.
If turns out to be half as good as Nichushkin it would be a nice pickup going forward.