The Avalanche traded forward prospect Shane Bowers to the Boston Bruins in exchange for goalie Keith Kinkaid, the team announced Saturday.
Kinkaid, 33, has appeared in 168 NHL games and started 146 since 2012-13, with stints in New Jersey, Montreal, New York and Boston. This was his first season in the Bruins’ organization. He spent most of it in the AHL, recording a .909 save percentage in 20 games for the Providence Bruins. He started one game for Boston at the NHL level.
Kinkaid has a career save percentage of .905 and a goals-allowed average of 2.91. His best season was 2017-18 for the Devils, when he started 38 games with a .913 save percentage and 2.77 GAA.
The trade comes while Avalanche backup goalie Pavel Francouz is out with a lower-body injury. On Feb. 17, coach Jared Bednar estimated Francouz would miss three weeks. It is the netminder’s second multi-week injury of this season.
The Avs have alternated backup goalies recently without Francouz in the lineup. After Jonas Johansson accompanied the team Friday in Winnipeg, he was reassigned to the AHL Colorado Eagles on Saturday, while prospect Justus Annunen was called back up to the NHL roster for the next game vs. Calgary. Annunen has started two NHL games, including a 4-1 win at St. Louis this February.
Kinkaid will report to the Eagles. The first time Francouz was hurt this season, the Avalanche didn’t use Annunen or Johansson; starter Alexandar Georgiev played 12 consecutive games, offering a glimpse into the organization’s faith in its goalie depth. Whether or not Francouz’s current injury turns out to be more severe, Kinkaid is an experienced depth addition to provide a sense of security before the playoffs.
Bowers, selected No. 28 overall by Ottawa in 2017, came to Colorado as part of the Matt Duchene trade. He was the last first-round pick from the 2017 draft class to appear in an NHL game. On Nov. 10, more than five years after being drafted, he was 1:46 into his NHL debut with the Avalanche when he sustained an upper-body injury. He missed several weeks then resumed play with the Eagles in Loveland, where he remained until this trade.
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