Long after the Avalanche practice ended Monday, assistant coach Tony Granato and defenseman Jordan Leopold were among those lingering on the ice. Eventually, they spent a few minutes together at the marker board, and they weren’t debating which of their alma maters – Granato’s Wisconsin Badgers or Leopold’s Minnesota Gophers – would claim the Paul Bunyan Axe in the rivalry football game Saturday.
They were going over strategy and systems.
“There’s a lot to learn, system-wise,” Leopold said. “I haven’t been out there for a game or an exhibition or anything, so I’m starting from ground zero. It’s a whole different system for me, and I’m just trying to be on the same page as the rest of the guys.”
Leopold, a 26-year-old defenseman who won the Hobey Baker Award as college hockey’s top player in 2002, underwent sports hernia surgery shortly after being acquired from Calgary last summer. But he has started to go through full practices, and could play as soon as Colorado’s next game, Saturday night against Edmonton at the Pepsi Center.
“It’s a day-to-day type of thing right now,” Leopold said. “I’m just making sure I’m 100 percent before I go out there. I don’t want it to be a situation where you’re in five games, out five games.”
Colorado coach Joel Quenneville recently was pessimistic about Leopold returning to the lineup this soon, but he has changed his outlook. “We’ll get a better read on him in the next couple of days, to see exactly when he’ll be ready to play, but he’s progressing every day,” Quenneville said. “He’s getting a little more into practice, getting more involved. I don’t want to say when yet. As we get closer to this weekend, we might have a date.”
Leopold came to the Avalanche for Alex Tanguay, which adds to the pressure. Playing in the tight-reined system of Calgary coach Darryl Sutter, Leopold did a solid, low-key job on the Flames’ blue line, not pitching in much offensively. Last season, he had only two goals and 18 assists for the Flames, the stingiest team in the league. In Colorado, criticism of the deal might be muted if Leopold breaks out of that mold and is able to show the sort of NHL offensive capability his college career seemed to foreshadow.
With Calgary, Leopold said: “It was one of those things where there was a team philosophy and you followed through. You had responsibilities, and you had to abide by them and play a role.”
Will it be different here?
“I hope so,” Leopold said. “I’d definitely like to up my production from a year ago and get back to more at the offensive end.”
Quenneville said the Avs are “hoping that’s something he can provide. That’s a nice element to have.”
He emphasized Colorado still wants Leopold “to be a defenseman first, be reliable and dependable. Hopefully, he can assume some nice matchups and kill penalties for us. There’s an opportunity to get some power-play time, and that won’t happen right off the bat. It’s something he’s going to have to earn. Hopefully, he can be that guy who can play in all situations.”
Terry Frei can be reached at 303-954-1895 or tfrei@denverpost.com.
