Avalanche trade defenseman Ryan Graves to Devils
Jul 15, 2021, 8:11 PM
The Colorado Avalanche have traded defenseman Ryan Graves to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for forward Mikhail Maltsev and a second-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, the team announced Thursday evening.
Maltsev, 23, made his NHL debut with New Jersey in January, earning nine points (6 goals/3 assists) in 33 games for the Devils this season.
A fourth-round selection by the Devils (102nd overall) in the 2016 NHL Draft, the 6-foot-3, 198-pound left wing started off the 2020-’21 campaign with the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg. He had previously played for the club before turning professional in North America.
The St. Petersburg, Russia, native also served as an alternate captain for his country at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship, recording two points in five tournament games.
In 149 career NHL games, all with Colorado, Graves recorded 46 points (14 goals/32 assists) and a plus-59 rating.
Graves led the league with a plus-40 plus/minus rating in the 2019-’20 season, becoming the first Avalanche player to do so since Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg (plus-52) did it in 2002-’03. It was also the highest plus/minus rating by a Colorado defenseman in team history.
The trade comes on the heels of fellow Avs defenseman Erik Johnson agreeing to waive his no-movement clause on Tuesday, freeing Colorado from having to protect him from next week’s Seattle Kraken expansion draft.
Graves had been rumored to be among the defenseman the Avs may protect from the expansion draft.
