Blackwood was in his second season with San Jose after being acquired in a trade with the Devils on June 27, 2023. He is in the final season of a two-year, $4.7 million contract ($2.35 million average annual value) and can become an unrestricted free agent July 1.
“I’m not going to comment on contract negotiations or anything like that,” MacFarland said. “Obviously, we want the player to get settled in here, focus on the hockey, and when the time is right, we’ll certainly see if there’s something that that can make sense. I’d be lying to you if I said we’re acquiring him for four months of hockey. We’ll let him do his thing, take care of what has to [be taken] care of on the ice. … The focus right now is on hockey, and that’s where I think it’ll stay in the near future.”
In 215 NHL games (201 starts) with the Sharks and Devils, Blackwood is 81-91-25 with a 3.07 GAA, .905 save percentage and 11 shutouts.
“I think we’re getting a guy in Blackwood that’s gained some experience in the League, has really kind of come into his own and matured as a No. 1 goaltender here,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said Tuesday. “He’s off to a great start to the year. I think it’s probably an area of our game where we needed some changes. I think it could be a good trade for Georgiev and a good trade for us, as well. And I think our guys are excited. We saw the difference just with the mixup with Wedgewood coming into the lineup, the veteran experience, outgoing personality.”
Georgiev is 8-7-0 with a 3.38 GAA and .874 save percentage in 18 games (17 starts) this season. He led goalies with 38 wins last season and tied for the lead with 40 in 2022-23, his first season with Colorado.
The 28-year-old is in the final season of a three-year contract and can become an unrestricted free agent after the season. He is 144-89-22 with a 2.89 GAA, .907 save percentage and 15 shutouts in 272 regular-season games (258 starts) with the Avalanche and New York Rangers.
He could play his first game with the Sharks (10-15-5) against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, NBCSCA).
Smith did not have a point in six games with the Sharks this season, last playing Nov. 25. He had been scratched the past six games. In 161 NHL games with the Sharks, Florida Panthers and Detroit Red Wings, the 26-year-old has 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) and 260 penalty minutes.
Kovalenko has eight points (four goals, four assists) in 28 games this season. The 25-year-old was scratched from the Avalanche’s 4-0 win against the Devils on Sunday.
“You got to give to get. The goalie market is, it’s a bear,” MacFarland said. “It’s not easy in-season to get goaltenders, starting goaltenders in this league, and we wanted to get ahead of it, and that was the cost of doing business. … They’re at a point where they’re playing really competitive hockey and there’s a lot of excitement going on with the Sharks, and [general manager Mike Grier] saw an opportunity to add a young player at the right age for his mix. … It’s certainly not a player that we were looking to move, per se, but that was one of the pieces that San Jose was drawn to. So, while we weren’t excited to move Nikolai, we just felt that [for] the opportunity to add Mackenzie, we had to swallow hard and include him in the deal.”
The 2025 fifth-round pick going going to San Jose could become the worse of Colorado’s two fourth-round picks if two of these three conditions are met:
* The Avalanche reach the Western Conference Final this season.
* Blackwood wins 25 games from Monday through the end of the regular season.
* Blackwood starts 30 games from Monday through the end of the regular season.
