Edmonton, Alberta – Avalanche fans may be worried Rob Blake won’t be back with the team next season, but Blake isn’t.
“I’m pretty confident things will get done before the July 1 deadline, that I’ll stay with Colorado,” Blake said Tuesday from his Cherry Hills home.
Those may be soothing words to the Avalanche. Blake, 36, is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent July 1, and his departure would be a huge blow to the Avs’ defense. The former Norris Trophy winner was excellent for the Avs this season, especially in the second half and playoffs.
There likely would be many suitors should Blake test the open market, but he said he hopes things don’t get that far.
“This is where we want to stay, in Colorado,” Blake said.
Blake said he would call Avalanche president Pierre Lacroix this week, hoping to begin negotiations toward a new deal. He said he expects Lacroix will negotiate his and other Avalanche players’ contracts, even if a new general manager is named soon.
Blake said he wants to play at least two or three more years and is excited about the Avalanche’s prospects.
“Other than staying healthy, I don’t think we need much,” Blake said.
The salary cap is expected to increase at least 10 percent from its current $39 million. Blake made $6,364,112 last season, and the Avs have nearly $19 million committed to players for next season. Other Avs due new contracts include Joe Sakic, Alex Tanguay, Karlis Skrastins, John-Michael Liles, Marek Svatos and Brett Clark.
Giguere in mix
Former Avalanche assistant general manager Francois Giguere could return to the organization, with the assistant tag taken off his office door.
Jean Martineau, Avalanche vice president of team services, said the Avs have interviewed Giguere for the team’s vacant general manager job.
“He is a strong candidate based on his experience and track record,” Martineau said. “But there are other candidates as well, and nothing has been decided yet.”
Giguere, 42, served as the assistant GM to Lacroix with the Avs from 1995-2000 and had the same title the past three seasons with the Dallas Stars. Giguere has an accounting degree from Laval University in Quebec. Giguere, who could not be reached for comment, left the Avalanche in 2002 to work with the Stars under GM Doug Armstrong.
Lacroix said recently he was intrigued by the idea of hiring former Avs goalie Patrick Roy, but Roy has said he isn’t ready to make the jump from coaching junior hockey in Quebec.
Roy’s team, the Quebec Remparts, is participating in the Memorial Cup tournament, which runs through Sunday.
Lacroix once said he would love to see his family’s name be like that of the Patrick family in the NHL, leading to speculation his son, Eric, would succeed him. But Eric Lacroix, an owner of a minor-league team in Prescott, Ariz., and former Avalanche director of hockey operations, said he is not a candidate.
Another former Avalanche player who might be a candidate for an NHL GM job in the future is Claude Lemieux. Last season, Lemieux was the president of the Phoenix Roadrunners of the East Coast Hockey League and has maintained relations with Lacroix and the Avs.
Adrian Dater can be reached at 303-820-5454 or adater@denverpost.com.
