Once again, Kadri's disciplinary concerns have cost his team a playoff run

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T. Tadi
June 11, 2021 (2:42 PM)

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The Colorado Avalanche have failed to make the playoffs again again, falling short against the Vegas Golden Knights and squandering a 2-0 series lead, dropping their second round series 4-2 thanks to a 6-3 loss in Game 6 in Las Vegas on Thursday.

While winning and losing are both team efforts, it's impossible to look at Nazem Kadri's antics in the Avs' first-round series against the St. Louis Blues and not blame the reckless centre for Colorado's lack of success in round two.
Kadri caught Blues defenseman Justin Faulk up high with a blindside hit in Game 2 of their first round meeting, promptly earning himself an 8-game suspension, which he appealed twice, unsuccessfully.

The 30-year-old forward has now been suspended in 3 of the last 4 postseasons and has been forced to be nothing more than a bystander, watching from the stands in two of the last 3 seasons while his respective teams were eliminated from the playoffs, thanks at least in part to Kadri's undisciplined behavior and poor decision-making.

So what do you do, if you're Avs GM Joe Sakic? Clearly Kadri has not learned his lesson and clearly the NHL's Department of Player Safety views Kadri as a problem and a player they have no issues making an example of.

Just as Leafs GM Kyle Dubas did in 2019, I fully anticipate Sakic attempting to move Kadri in the offseason, if for no other reason than that you simply cannot afford to play a guy who has shown his inability to play on the right side of the line. It's bad enough if a player can't control himself during the regular season, but when he isn't able to play a disciplined game in the postseason, that's where it really starts to hinder a team's ability to make a deep run - especially when a team's 2nd line center is so vital to any potential postseason success.

The main issue here is that Sakic may be forced to take a loss in any deal involving Kadri, due to his current value being at an all-time low after his latest indiscretion.

Kadri has one season remaining on his current deal, carries a $4.5M cap hit and has a 10-team no-trade clause in his contract, which may only further hamper his trade value, as he has the ability to block a trade to a team on that list as he did a few seasons ago when the Leafs attempted to trade Kadri to the Calgary Flames.

This one is a tough situation all around for the Colorado Avalanche. I simply do not see Kadri in an Avs jersey when the puck drops to open the 2021-22 season.