Avalanche Sign Forward Brad May

[Humpzilla]

The Colorado Avalanche has signed veteran forward Brad May to a two-year contract.

May, 33, a veteran of 804 NHL contests, joins the Avalanche after having spent all of the 2003-04 season with the Vancouver Canucks. He’s made previous stops in Phoenix and Buffalo where he began his career, selected by the Sabres 14th overall in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft.

"Brad May is a good skater who brings us additional grit, leadership and experience," said Avalanche President and General Manager Pierre Lacroix.

"I’m looking forward to continue my career in such a great hockey environment," said May. "I have a tremendous amount of respect for the guys on this roster and I’m looking forward to playing with them. This is going to be a very competitive division, one that could be the most exciting in the NHL."

[Brookbank28]

Grrr I am so pissed off, first off we lose May, secondly to the Aves.

[Duffx AVS-fan]

Sweeeet..

[Brookbank28]

I kinda want Canucks to sign Brad Brown now

[scrapper62]

he'll get beatdown in camp

[#2EddieShore]

crossing the trenches eh.

[Humpzilla]

Personally, I'm very glad that the Avs went out and signed a Heavyweight enforcer. I'm also glad that the guy will able be able to chip in offensively and not be a liability, but I can't help not to think if Pierre Lacroix suffers from some sort of short term memory loss disorder. But then again all I have to do to get rid of those thoughts is envision Bob Boughner squaring off with anyone, and for some reason I can't remember what transpired on March, 9th 2004

Overall, good pick! Finally a signing that I can be proud of...

[HordiBrusk29]

Great pick up for the Avs. It'll be really strange seeing May in a Colorado uniform, but he is a perfect fit for the Avs. Glad to see him stay out west.

[habsfighter15]

Good signing for Colorado he's a good guy to have. Obviously not a top guy anymore but still a good leader to have in the room and he brings the grit.

[O-Gnimh]

Bizarre move after his "role" in the Moore incident. I wonder how he'll be received in the locker room...but LaCroix must've thought of that.

May will have his work cut out for himself if he is their #1. Hopefully he can stay healthy with that shoulder.

I like May though.

[Humpzilla]

The Colorado Avalanche took another dip into the free agent market Friday, signing unrestricted free agent forward Brad May to a two-year contract.

Financial terms of the deal are not available.

In 2003-04, May led the Vancouver Canucks with 137 penalty minutes as the team won its first division title in 11 years.

The 33-year-old was drafted 14th overall in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft by the Buffalo Sabres and played 13 seasons with Buffalo, Vancouver and Phoenix.

"Brad May is a good skater who brings us additional grit, leadership and experience," said Avalanche President and General Manager Pierre Lacroix.

"I’m looking forward to continue my career in such a great hockey environment," said May. "I have a tremendous amount of respect for the guys on this roster and I’m looking forward to playing with them. This is going to be a very competitive division, one that could be the most exciting in the NHL"

[Laraque008]

As I read the news on TSN, I find myself absolutely shocked to see that Brad May has signed with Colorado. Somehow this just seems wrong to me...

I'm sure we all remember that night when the Bertuzzi "incident" took place - May fought Worrell twice that night (and did pretty well), and he beat Sauer during the brawl that came from the Moore punch.

If I were a Canuck fan, I think I would feel a bit betrayed. IMO, there is a huge rivalry now between these two teams and there is still a lot to be settled.

The only comparable bad blood that I can see in the recent past is the colorado vs detroit hatred. What would people have thought if right after the incident with Claude Lemieux, he had signed with Detroit. Fans on both sides would have been enraged.

I am curious to see what you guys think of this - is Brad May signing with Colorado over the line? Is the rivalry comparable to the detroit - colorado rivalry?

If I remember correctly - doesn't Moore have a civil suit outstanding against May? That could make things slightly interesting...

I am curious to see everyone's thoughts - does May's move seem strange or has everything been left on the ice...

One final thought - If there had not been a year lost to the lockout - would May have done this or do you think the year off has been key in "cooling down" the whole incident.

[Dave_42]

This is like Detroit signing Claude Lemieux, the year after he stapled Draper into the boards, or signing Roy after fighting Osgood and Vernon. What a load of crap. He is going ot have to answer to someone in training camp... hopefully. Oh well.

[Kocur 26]

Being discussed in Player Movement forum

[rock'emsock'em]

Good signing, some excitement added to what was quickly becoming a more boring team.