The Avalanche now have a whole lot of wood in net.

The organization on Monday made a big splash, overhauling the goaltender position for the second time in a little over a week.

The Avalanche sent Alexandar Georgiev, forward Nikolai Kovalenko, a 2025 fifth-round draft pick and a 2026 second-round pick to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood, depth forward Givani Smith, and a 2027 fifth-round pick. Colorado is also retaining 14% of Georgiev’s contract.

On Dec. 1, the Avalanche acquired goalie Scott Wedgewood for Justus Annunen, so there’s been quite a bit of change in net of late.

That change was desperately needed, though.

Georgiev statistically had been the worst starting goaltender in the NHL this season, while Blackwood has posted impressive numbers behind a rebuilding San Jose team. Blackwood has saved 3.9 goals above expected this season.

At the opposite end of the spectrum you have Georgiev, whose goals saved above expected is down at minus-9.4. Blackwood has a .911 save percentage, while Georgiev is at .874.

Kovalenko had an OK rookie season with the Avalanche but has been passed on the depth chart by Ivan Ivan, making him expendable. He’ll likely get more opportunity on a young team in San Jose. For someone who didn’t speak a ton of English, he was always willing to talk and had a real personality.

This marks the second time in 30 years the Avalanche organization has traded a Kovalenko for a goaltender. Nikolai’s father, Andrei, was part of the Patrick Roy trade in 1995.

Funny how that worked.

While Blackwood doesn’t come without question marks, this is a move the Avalanche had to make. The Avalanche have been dealing with Georgiev’s inconsistency for over a year now and could only deal with it for so much longer. Something had to be done, and Blackwood was the best option available on the trade market. Even if he provides average goaltending, that’s an upgrade from what the Avalanche were getting from Georgiev.

Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland said after the trade and the deal for Blackwood took a few weeks to come together. With the team built in front of the goalies, he felt he owed it to the team to take a swing.

“I think it shook us to the core with the rough start. I’m not going to lie,” MacFarland said of his goaltending. “I think we came out of the gate slow and it’s not a secret our goaltending has not been up to standard. It was inconsistent to start, and we felt we had to make a move.”

The 28-year old Blackwood is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer, so if the Avalanche want to keep him, they’ll have to pay up. If this works out, they won’t mind doing that.

“We want the player to get settled in here,” MacFarland said of Blackwood. “We’ll certainly see if there’s something that can make sense. I’d be lying to you if I said we’re acquiring him for four months of hockey.”

While his numbers are strong this season, Blackwood has zero playoff experience and has only played on bad teams. It’ll be interesting to see how he adjusts playing for a team that has Stanley Cup expectations.

The Avalanche were scheduled to play at Pittsburgh Tuesday. Blackwood will not meet the Avalanche in Pittsburgh due to an illness. He will fly to Denver and meet the team when they return later this week. Scott Wedgewood will likely start against the Penguins.