COMPENSATION
$551,076 or below                            None
Over $551,076 - $757,729                Third-round choice
Over $757,729 - $895,498                Second-round choice
Over $895,498 - $1,102,152             First-round choice
Over $1,102,152 - $1,377,689          First-and third-round choices
Over $1,377,689 - $1,653,227          First-and second-round choices
Over $1,653,227 - $1,928,765          Two first-round choices
Over $1,928,765 - $2,342,071          Two first-round, one second- round choice
Over $2,342,071                               Three first-round choices
Each additional $1,377,689               Maximum of five

When NHL teams mull over the free agent market, they ask the following questions: Who’s worth keeping? Who isn’t?

The list of restricted free agents on the Avalanche roster is as follows. We’re not here to tell the Avs who should stay or who should go, rather we’re here to evaluate each player’s worth and what they’ve meant to the team.

2008 Avalanche Restricted Free Agents

Jason Bacashihua, Goalie- It’s worth noting that Jose Theodore is an unrestricted free agent (we will look at those next week). Bacashihua saw very limited action, going 3-7-3 with a .896 save percentage. He was the Lake Eerie second string goaltender.

Johnny Boychuk, Defense- The Avs do have some depth on D but that also depends on the free agent market (Finger, Foote, Liles and Sauer are all unrestricted). Boychuk had 26 points in 60 games with the AHL’s Lake Eerie Monsters and only played in four games with the Avalanche.

Darcy Campbell, Defense- In all fairness, it’s hard to find much on this Alberta-born minor leaguer. He barely laced it up for the Monsters, playing in eight games after being traded from the Syracuse Crunch.  

Dan DaSilva, RW- DaSilva, who just turned 23, is still a youngster trying to hold his own in the AHL. He only recorded 23 points last year and should make a small improvement in the upcoming season. DaSilva is sixth in points on the team of all players that are currently active on the Monsters’ roster.

Philippe Dupuis, C- After 29 games with the Syracuse Crunch, he was traded to Lake Eerie. In his 17 games with Avalanche farm team he tallied eight points. Assuming he settles into the system next year, he could put up bigger numbers.

Mitch Love, D- Played in 59 games with Lake Eerie (recording seven points). He currently plays for the Johnstown Chiefs of the ECHL.

Cody McCormick, W- McCormick is a tough guy, possibly best known this past season for his April 26 fight with Darren McCarty. McCormick took him to the ice and the crowd went wild, even though the Avs were losing 4-0. He became a bit of a fan favorite after that.

Cody McLeod, LW- At 6’2”, 210 pounds, McLeod is a force to be reckoned with—and he’s proven it. He racked up over 100 penalty minutes with both Lake Eerie and the Avalanche in one season. Not a bad idea to keep some enforcers on the squad.
 
Brad Richardson, C- If the Avs let another team sign him, they could get a third rounder. Richardson had five points in 22 games with the Avs and 40 points in 38 games with the Monsters. He should be a guy who grows as he sees more playing time.

Marek Svatos, RW- He was leading the Avalanche with 26 goals throughout the 2007-08 season when he suffered a torn ACL March 1. Svatos then missed the final 16 games of the regular season and the playoffs. The Avs know he’s a great goal scorer, but may be injury prone throughout his career. His 2007-08 salary was $1.2 million.

Mike Wall, G- Minded the Monsters’ net more than any other goalie this season. He went 12-16 with a .908 save percentage. He should be the mainstay in goal for them next season but will once again split major time with Tyler Weiman.

Tyler Weiman, G- Would have been the main goalie for Lake Eerie but was called up to the Avs a few times. He made his NHL debut in 2007 and each year continues to improve. Weiman could become a bigger part of the Avalanche organization if Theodore doesn’t return.

Wojtek Wolski, LW- Wolski was drafted by the Avs in the first round of the 2004 entry draft. At 22 he’s still got his whole career ahead of him and the Avs know it. The organization and the fans appear to love this guy so it wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s in an Avs uniform next season.