Yip Back to the Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche signed two players on Wednesday, re-signing Brandon Yip to a new 2-year deal worth $1.45 million and adding Ben Walter to a small 1-year, $500,000 deal as well.

Yip was an impact player for the Avalanche after coming back from an undisclosed injury during the year and spending time in the minors.  In the last 32 games of the regular season, Yip picked up 11 goals and 8 assists, giving him a scoring rate better than 0.5 points per game.  In the playoffs, Yip had 4 points in 6 games against the Sharks, but the team came up short in the end.

Walter will be a depth player in the 2011, likely spending most of his time in the AHL, not likely going to be a good candidate for your pool team.  Walter only figured into 2 NHL games in 2010, not registering a point.

With the addition of Yip to their line-up, the Avalanche now have 19 players and one buyout for a grand total of $38.7 million against the cap, well below the salary cap floor at the moment.  A young team like the Avalanche were bound to have a small cap number, but once the entry-level deals expire, then the Avalanche will be in for a tough ride.