During the assessments of the Avalanche's outlook on defense in the next few seasons, the names of recent draft choices keep coming up — as in, help might be on the way.
Among those 20-year-olds Chris Bigras and Mason Geertsen, the Avalanche's second- and fourth-round picks, respectively, in 2013.
After the completion of their major junior seasons last spring — Bigras with the Owen Sound Attack and Geertsen with the Vancouver Giants — both finished out the schedule with the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League.
Bigras had signed a three-year entry level contract in September 2013 after impressing the Avalanche in training camp, while Geertsen didn't do so until last March, after it seemed possible he would remain unsigned and re-enter the 2015 draft.