Avalanche Acquire Blue Jackets Prospect Gavin Brindley in June Trade

Gavin Brindley arrived in Colorado last June as part of a significant roster reshaping, and nine months later the Avalanche moved him down to the AHL's Colorado Eagles on March 26 for late-season minutes, the team announced on X.

The trade that brought Brindley to Colorado came June 27, 2025, when the Avalanche acquired the 21-year-old right wing along with Columbus' 2025 third-round pick (77th overall) and a conditional second-round pick in 2027 in exchange for veteran forwards Charlie Coyle and Miles Wood. Columbus drafted Brindley 34th overall in the second round of the 2023 NHL Draft.

Brindley made the most of his first full season with the Avalanche organization. He scored his first NHL goal against the Dallas Stars on October 11, 2025, then added his first career game-winning goal in overtime against the Vancouver Canucks on November 9. Two days later, Colorado signed him to a two-year contract extension, locking him in at a $950,000 cap hit through the 2025-26 season. He finished with 13 points in 56 NHL games before the loan to Colorado's AHL affiliate.

The road to this point was anything but smooth. Brindley broke a finger in a preseason game on October 1, 2024, opening the 2024-25 season on injured reserve before being activated and loaned to the Cleveland Monsters on November 14. He posted 6 goals and 11 assists for 17 points in 52 games with the Monsters, then appeared in four Calder Cup Playoff contests.

Colorado Eagles head coach Mark Letestu, who served as an assistant with the Monsters during Brindley's time there, offered a candid assessment of what that AHL year demanded. "The American Hockey League is a really tough league," Letestu said. "What I've seen Gavin have to go through, where it didn't go as well as he wanted to, didn't score as many points. It wasn't like being at Michigan. You can tell he put the work in in the summer. He didn't pout. He knew exactly what he had to do to get better."

Michigan is where Brindley built the reputation that made him a second-round pick. He skipped his senior year of high school to enroll early, and after a strong freshman season with 38 points in 41 games, he exploded as a sophomore with 53 points and 25 goals in 40 games to lead the Wolverines in scoring. He earned Big Ten Player of the Year and Big Ten Scoring Champion honors, putting up 29 points in 23 conference games. At 5-foot-8 and 173 pounds, scouts consistently flagged his size as a concern, but his skating ability, quick hands, and high-intensity play drew equal attention.

Scouting evaluations describe Brindley as "an excellent skater with great agility, speed, and edgework" who plays as a true playmaker while also generating rebound chances with a quick, powerful shot. Those traits helped him earn the fourth spot on MileHighHockey's Colorado Avalanche Top 25 Under 25 rankings entering this season.

His international resume adds further credibility. Brindley won gold at the 2024 World Junior Championship in Sweden, added a bronze at the 2023 WJC in Canada, and claimed silver at the 2022 World U18 Championship in Germany. He also represented the United States at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics, recording a goal and an assist in four games on his way to a silver medal.

Brindley will be a restricted free agent in 2026, making this late-season AHL stretch a meaningful audition. The Eagles are pushing for a playoff position, and the Avalanche get a development opportunity that keeps one of their top prospects sharp at the right time of year.