After being a healthy scratch in three of Colorado’s last four games, Nikita Zadorov is heading to AHL San Antonio.
TRANSACTION: Nikita Zadorov has been reassigned to @sarampage.
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) November 7, 2015
The Avs acquired the 20-year-old in an off-season trade that sent Ryan O’Reilly to to the Buffalo Sabres, but his adaptation to his new team hasn’t gone according to plan.
In his last game against Arizona, he finished with a minus-3 rating in just over 10 minutes of ice time.
Earlier this week, head coach Patrick Roy admitted that Zadorov is a “long-term project” for the Avs so they won’t feel the need to rush his development if they feel he isn’t ready.
Roy on scratching Nikita Zadorov, 20, 2nd straight game: "Z is a long-term project for us," adding he needs time to watch from afar #Avs
— Mike Chambers (@MikeChambers) November 3, 2015
Zadorov will have a chance to regain his confidence by playing significant minutes with the Rampage.