Earlier this offseason, the Tampa Bay Lightning lost defenseman Calvin de Haan in free agency. The veteran defender signed a one-year, $800,000 contract with the Colorado Avalanche and should be a solid addition to their depth.

de Haan is undoubtedly joining a top club, as the Avalanche sport one of the best rosters in the NHL and are clear contenders heading into the 2024-25 season. de Haan has also made it abundantly clear that he recognizes this.

In a recent X post, Big Head Hockey asked their followers if the Avalanche’s projected defensive group is “good to go for a playoff run.” de Haan responded confidently to the question on his personal X account by saying, “No doubt.”

No doubt

— Calvin de Haan (@cal_dehaan) August 6, 2024

With this, it is apparent that de Haan feels that the Avalanche have a real shot of being a top-tier club yet again. When noting that their top stars from last year are all still in Colorado, it is easy to understand de Haan’s position,

de Haan is now entering his 13th career NHL season, and he is still looking for his first Stanley Cup. It will be interesting to see if the former Lightning defender ends up getting a real shot at changing that with the Avs from here.