Avs agree to 3-year, entry-level deal with goalie Annunen

DENVER (AP) The Colorado Avalanche have agreed to a three-year, entry-level deal with goaltender Justus Annunen, the team announced Thursday.

The 20-year-old Finnish product was a third-round pick by Colorado in the 2018 draft. He was 15-5-3 with a 1.77 goals-against average this season for Karpat, a team in Finland’s top professional league. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Annunen also posted six shutouts, including a streak where he went 302 minutes, 5 seconds without allowing a goal.

Annunen suited up for Finland at the 2020 IIHF world junior championships. He had a 2.65 goals-against average in six contests.

Colorado was relying on Pavel Francouz and Michael Hutchinson in goal down the stretch before the season was halted because of the coronavirus pandemic. Philipp Grubauer was placed on injured reserve in February with a lower-body injury.

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