With the NHL season kicking off tomorrow today was the deadline for clubs to finalize their regular season rosters. The Avs made their final cuts today reassigning one player to Lake Erie and placing three in the injured reserve.

The roster was previously cut to 27 players on October 2nd. I tweeted about it, but haven’t been able to find the time to write anything up.

The four players reassigned on Sunday were defenseman Tyson Barrie, left winger Patrick Bordeleau, center Brad Malone, and goalie Trevor Cann. They were all sent to Lake Erie of the AHL.

The final player sent to Lake Erie was defenseman Stefan Elliott. Kyle Cumiskey (groin), Mark Olver (head), and Brandon Yip (arm) were all placed on the injured reserve.

Elliott and Malone were both fan favorites throughout training camp. It was questionable as to whether or not Malone would be on the team, but many fans expected to see Elliott on the starting lineup Saturday. It appears that Cumiskey’s injury plays a large role in the reassigning of Elliott. Since Cumiskey is injured he cannot be sent down to the minors (he has a two-way contract) and Elliott was the only other option without sending a guy through waivers.

Cumiskey, who is nursing a groin injury, is skating, but has not been cleared for contact. I don’t mind this move as it gives Elliott some time to develop before making the jump to the NHL. He made his professional début with the Monsters last season and recorded two assists through five playoff games. I think he is ready for the NHL, but spending some time in Lake Erie will benefit him more than it will hurt him. We will see what happens when Cumiskey is healthy again, but I doubt the Avs send down a healthy player to bring up an unproven rookie. It could happen, but it’s not the Avs style, in my opinion.