Furthermore, Roy damaged his chances of landing a job in the NHL by leaving the Avalanche in a difficult situation. He declared in August of the previous year that he would not be playing again, citing a lack of “say in the decisions that impact the team’s performance.”
Since most coaches had already been appointed for the next season, that left then-GM Joe Sakic frantically searching for a replacement. Jared Bednar, who had just won the Calder Cup with the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL, was drawn to him. Even though the Avalanche scored just 48 points in Bednar’s debut season, they were well-positioned to select superstar defenseman Cale Makar with the fourth pick in the 2017 draft.
ADDITIONAL FROMFORBES
