The Colorado Avalanche made a surprise cut on Thursday, releasing veteran Pierre-Edouard Bellemare from his tryout contract with the team.

Many thought Bellemare would be Colorado’s fourth-line center when the team opens the regular season next Wednesday night in Las Vegas, but that won’t be the case.

https://x.com/Avalanche/status/1841882235361804490

Bellemare played for the Avs in both the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 seasons. He then spent the next two years with the Lightning, where, ironically, he lost the Stanley Cup to the Avalanche in 2022. Last year he played in Seattle with the Kraken but only had seven points in 40 games.

Because of this, Colorado was able to invite Bellemare for a tryout, but there was no guaranteed deal. It seemed like it would be a formality that he would be offered a contract with the Avs at some point this season, but GM Chris MacFarland and head coach Jared Bednar are going in a different direction.

At 39 years old, this is a huge blow for Bellemare as he may have played his last game in the NHL. Colorado will look to get younger at the position with guys like Parker Kelly and Ivan Ivan still in the mix. TJ Tynan and Chris Wagner are also veterans.

Additionally, don’t rule out the Avalanche looking elsewhere as other teams finalize their rosters and make surprise cuts. Unfortunately, this is what happened to Bellemare, Colorado on Thursday.