The Avalanche have recalled netminder Justus Annunen from the AHL’s Colorado Eagles, according to a team announcement on Saturday night.
The news doesn’t indicate an injury to either of the Avalanche’s two rostered goalies, Alexandar Georgiev and Ivan Prosvetov. Instead, head coach Jared Bednar told the team he prefers to have a third option in the mix for time in the crease during the team’s upcoming back-to-back set of games against the Canadiens and Senators, a team spokesman told The Denver Post’s Corey Masisak.
Annunen, 23, was signed to a one-year, two-way deal last summer after reaching RFA status upon the conclusion of his entry-level contract. This is the second recall of the season after he was rostered for the first week of the campaign to provide competition for the backup job with Prosvetov, a pre-season waiver claim. The 2018 third-round pick has a .908 SV% in 18 games with the Eagles, posting a 2.62 GAA and 9-5-4 record.
He has four games of NHL experience, coming in the form of two appearances each in the last two seasons. Through a small sample size, he hasn’t impressed, posting a .859 SV% and 3.92 GAA. He’s allowed 4.8 goals above expected in only 214 minutes between the pipes (equivalent to 3.57 60-minute games), per MoneyPuck, although he has recorded a 2-1-1 record.
A decent start in the AHL has kept his development on track, and he remains a future option as a potential tandem netminder for the Avs. Expecting Annunen to be a long-term starter is likely too optimistic, but the 6-foot-4 Finn has shown enough improvement at the minor-league level this season to earn a qualifying offer when he reaches RFA status again next summer. He will be eligible for salary arbitration.