Joining Avalanche 'Felt Special' for Georgiev

Welcome to Colorado.
For the first time since being acquired by the Colorado Avalanche last Thursday - via a trade with the New York Rangers that sent Colorado's third-round and fifth-round selections in the 2022 NHL Draft and a third-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft to the Big Apple - goaltender Alexandar Georgiev spoke with media on Tuesday afternoon via Zoom and shared his thoughts on the new chapter of his career.

"It felt special," Georgiev said with a smile. "I've been dream of that for quite a few years now. I've been hoping to get an opportunity to play for this kind of team that's special. They just won the Cup, obviously and they have the core that's going to stay a while together. To get the opportunity to play for them is unbelievable. It felt unreal. I am really blessed for that."
The 26-year-old had spent the last five seasons in the NHL and with the Rangers, where he joined the club as an undrafted free agent in the summer of 2017. The Ruse, Bulgaria native - who is also a dual citizen of Russia - owns an overall 58-48-11 record, a 2.94 goals-against average, .908 save percentage and eight shutouts in 129 career games, with the Rangers.

In the last couple of seasons with the emergence of this year's Vezina Trophy winner in Igor Shesterkin, Georgiev occupied the backup netminder role for the Rangers. Even so, he posted a 15-10-2 record this past season, including an 8-1-0 run with two shutouts in his last nine starts of the campaign. He earned his 50th career win on Jan. 8 at Anaheim and finished the season with an .898 SV% and 2.92 GAA.
As he trades skyscrapers for 14ers and adapts to the altitude, Georgiev noted how much he's looking forward to the fresh start in Colorado and what better team to join than the defending Stanley Cup champions. The decision to sign for three years with the Avalanche was an easy one, as he inked his contract with Colorado on Sunday afternoon.
"When I heard it was Colorado Avalanche, it's just as good as I could hope for," Georgiev said. "The team is unreal. They just won the Cup, and they have the same goal for the next few years. I just wanted to be a part of that group. I felt the support that I needed and a chance I've always dreamed about. It was pretty easy for me to want to be with that team for the next three years."
While joining the Avalanche will be a change across the board regarding lifestyle, time zone and even just donning a new set of threads and gear for the first time in his NHL career, Georgiev has some familiar faces among the squad. He and Colorado winger Mikko Rantanen played juniors together for TPS U20 in Finland's Liiga, when they were 18 years old and both train together in the offseason back in Finland, where Georgiev currently is. He noted that he had met up with Avs Goaltending Coach Jussi Parkkila earlier that day for lunch.
"[Parkkila is] a couple of hours away from me," Georgiev said. "We got to take lunch together and talk a bit about the upcoming season and just Denver overall. He had a lot to say. He gave me a lot of good tips and welcomed me to the area. It seems like we have a lot in common. He has a plan for me. He's really excited to work with me and it's the same for me, I am super happy to work with Juusi."

And despite not knowing or having met future goaltending partner Pavel Francouz, Georgiev shared his excitement to get to know him and establish a partnership.
"Juusi had a lot of praise for him," Georgiev said. "He said he's an awesome guy. He speaks Russian apparently, so I'll have a couple of guys to speak Russian with. I'm looking forward to working with him and being a great tandem."
With the rest of the offseason on deck, Georgiev is motivated by the opportunity to join the Avalanche and play some of his best hockey yet come this fall as the collective squad will begin its quest to defend its Stanley Cup, they hoisted this past June.
But just knowing that Colorado has invested full confidence in him and even receiving the verbal recognition from
Executive Vice President and President of Hockey Operations Joe Sakic - who articulated at the 2022 NHL Draft in Montreal last weekend that Georgiev is the envisioned starter
for the Avalanche come this fall - is the ultimate motivator for Georgiev.
"It's a big boost, it's something I needed," Georgiev said. "The last couple of seasons, I didn't get a big opportunity to play. Hearing that the Stanley Cup champions believe in you and believe you are the guy, that's all I ever wanted. I believe in myself. It's awesome to hear that this team has confidence in me. I am working hard to prove they're right."