(Denver) It’s through the draft that teams are built, and that’s where the mainstays of the two teams of the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup final came from: the Cale Makar , Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen on one side, Victor Hedman, Steven Stamkos, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Anthony Cirelli on the other.
Posted at 6:00 a.m.
But the many complementary pieces that we see at work, those shadowy players who suddenly get a lot more attention in the playoffs, are usually the work of professional scouts. A work that remains in the shadows.
At the Avalanche, the man of confidence for the clubs of the West, it is Daniel Laperrière, former defender of the Blues of St. Louis and the Ottawa Senators, who also played several years in Germany.
Established in Las Vegas for three years, the son of Jacques Laperrière has been a professional recruiter for the Avalanche since 2011. He therefore deals mainly with clubs in the American West, but is also called upon to spy on teams in the Eastern late in the season, when scouts crossbreed.
” It is a relief ! “, he launched, met on the ice of the Amalie Arena during the post-match festivities, Sunday. “There are a lot of people who put a lot of hours behind the scenes, and everyone pushed for the wheel. It’s an incredible feeling. »
Crucial additions
General manager Joe Sakic was hyperactive late in the season, acquiring Artturi Lehkonen, Josh Manson, Andrew Cogliano and Nico Sturm in the final week before the trade deadline.
PHOTO GEOFF BURKE, USA TODAY SPORTS ARCHIVES
Artturi Lehkonen lifting the Stanley Cup
Such acquisitions are the work product of both recruiting departments. Because for Lehkonen as for Manson, the Avalanche has sacrificed hopes from amateur recruiting. If the Montreal Canadiens don’t see potential in Justin Barron, if the Anaheim Ducks think Drew Helleson will never break into the NHL, those trades might never have materialized.
Of Montreal, it is of course Lehkonen who is the most talked about. “He was on the radar, high on our list. We knew he would surely be available. As we talked, we pushed for him, especially our Eastern scouts. He was really good, ”explains Laperrière.
To afford Lehkonen, Sakic however had to draw from the court of his amateur recruiters by sacrificing Barron, choice of 1er tour of the Avalanche in 2020, while also giving the CH a choice of 2e round in 2024.
We paid a big price. It may take a few years for Montreal to reap the benefits of the transaction. But it’s like that. We learned from the Lightning the last two years. They paid top dollar.
Daniel Laperriere
“Even Josh Manson, he maybe got us through the second round against the Blues, a more robust club. We needed that. »
In the playoffs, Lehkonen has been used all over the place, but often in an offensive role. Manson, on the other hand, played his role as fifth defenseman wonderfully, distributing hard-hitting checks, while amassing 8 points in 20 games.
PHOTO ISAIAH J. DOWNING, USA TODAY SPORTS ARCHIVES
Andrew Cogliano
Sturm and Cogliano were employed on the fourth line. But in post-game interviews, Makar revealed that Cogliano had put in a team meeting the day before Game 6. On the summary, we will therefore read that the former iron man played 9 min 34 s in the elimination match, and that he obtained a shot on goal. But concretely, from the top of his 1140 games of experience in the NHL, he found his way to help his new team.
“I’m glad we had some pretty solid discussions, because we had to convince Joe that Lehkonen was a guy we needed, just like Manson. Even Cogliano… he’s got more mileage in his body, but he’s got a lot of playoff experience. All of these additions paid off. »