The Avalanche made two transactions on opening night and recalled forwards Nikolai Kovalenko And Ivan Ivan from AHL Colorado.

At least one of them will make his NHL debut tomorrow against the Golden Knights. Due to cap constraints and in an attempt to maximize their potential LTIR capture, the Avalanche only had 11 forwards on the opening roster submitted yesterday. Kovalenko and Ivan were sent off yesterday, just hours before Colorado’s first squad was due, and both were expected to rejoin the club today.

If Kovalenko manages a draw, it would only be his regular season debut. He made his NHL debut in the playoffs last year, when he skated and failed to get on the scoresheet in Games 4 and 5 of their first-round win over the Jets. Still, it would be a nice early birthday present for the 2018 sixth-round pick, who turns 25 next week. The impending free agent played a crucial role for Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod of the KHL over the past two seasons, recording 89 points in 98 games while also serving as an alternate captain. After arriving in Colorado at the conclusion of last season, he recorded three points in four AHL games.

However, it would be a real debut for 22-year-old Ivan. The Czech pivot went undrafted after scoring 177 points in 191 games over three seasons with the QMJHL’s Cape Breton Eagles and opted to sign an AHL contract with Colorado’s affiliate last summer. He had a solid performance, totaling 31 points (12 G, 19 A) in 67 games en route to an entry-level NHL contract with the Avs in March. He was viewed as a potential draft option this season, but was a top-six forward despite the Avs’ multiple absences Gabriel Landeskog, Artturi LehkonenAnd Valery Nichushkinhe had little chance of getting into the squad. It’s clear he’s made good progress on Colorado’s depth chart with a strong camp.

The Avs had the roster space but not the cap space to make this transaction, so it’s fair to take either Landeskog, Lehkonen or a newly acquired defenseman Tucker Poolman was placed on the long-term injured reserve as part of a corresponding transaction.