Monday, June 11 Updated: June 13, 3:17 AM ET Is the Avalanche over? By Terry Frei Special to ESPN.com DENVER - What next? Even as the champagne was spraying, with players and their families wedged in the Colorado dressing room in the Pepsi Center, the speculation swirled around them. Will Joe Sakic be around to lift another Stanley Cup in Denver? Who would be back? Who wouldn't? Shouldn't this championship be sponsored by Hertz or Avis, since it was a tribute to a short-term rental philosophy? And, frankly, some of the talk was ridiculous, starting with the premise that because the Avalanche had scrambled to acquire Ray Bourque and Rob Blake the last two seasons, they had mortgaged their future. So let's start with that. Alex Tanguay, the left wing who scored the Avs' first two goals in Game 7, is 21. Milan Hejduk, the Czech winger on the line with Tanguay and Joe Sakic, is 25. Chris Drury, who now has won a Little League World Series, an NCAA hockey championship and now the Stanley Cup, is 24. Even Peter Forsberg is only 27. Defenseman Martin Skoula also is 21. Goalie David Aebsicher, who had a solid rookie season as Patrick Roy's backup, is 23. Dan Hinote, the former West Point cadet who played on both the first and second line in Game 7, is 24. These are not the ancient mariners (or even the Seattle Mariners, who -- despite their incredible start -- aren't all that hot on skates.) Colorado general manager Pierre Lacroix rubs some of his compatriots the wrong way, but he is as adept as anyone in the business at understanding the principle of layering a roster -- for both financial and competitive reasons. One example: He was ripped, absolutely ripped, for trading away the popular and versatile Mike Ricci for a draft choice in 1997. The draft choice turned out to be a kid named Alex Tanguay. The championship also guaranteed that first-year owner Stan Kroenke's misgivings about the NHL salary structure won't translate into a down-scaling of ambition. It was Kroenke's second championship celebration in 17 months, since he remains a significant part-owner of the St. Louis Rams. Unlike the NFL, the NHL doesn't have a salary cap, so the restraints are self-imposed. Especially in the NHL, then, a championship requires both acumen and ambition. This roster in some ways is a bit top-heavy -- not for Kroenke, but for Lacroix, as strange as that sounds, because he loves being credited with making the most of his resources and hates the notion that he simply has more resources. But a championship validates anything. In the Avalanche dressing room Saturday night, Kroenke was enjoying himself. "Unbelievable year," he said, hoarsely. "Unbelievable accomplishment. Unbelievable people. Unbelievable players. What can you say about a year like this? How often do you go to a seventh game in the Stanley Cup, then you win it in front of the home fans? Unbelievable!" And Kroenke said he would like to keep the team together. Empty rhetoric that might be forgotten after the hangover of the celebration disappears? Perhaps, but probably not. Lacroix, the former player agent who actually enjoys the art of juggling resources, will be given the go-ahead to do what it takes to keep the core of this team together. "I think it's no secret for anybody, there are a lot of issues to be addressed," Lacroix said after Game 7. "We'll take one issue at a time, starting, oh, how about Tuesday? Until Tuesday, we are pretty busy. We have a full agenda, but we will address each and every one." First of all, Ray Bourque almost certainly is going to retire. After attaining his championship goal, after hoisting the Cup overhead, after 22 seasons, there is only one reason he would return next season -- money. First of all, Ray Bourque almost certainly is going to retire. After attaining his championship goal, after hoisting the Cup overhead, after 22 seasons, there is only one reason he would return next season -- money. He would earn $6.5 million next season if he returns. But why do it? For so many reasons previously discussed, this was the perfect way for Bourque to go out, and now he can return to his Boston-area home, watch his son, Christopher, play hockey for Cushing Academy and begin a post-hockey life. "I am going to take a little time here to think about the future and get some rest," Bourque said. "The minute I make a decision, the hockey world is going to know about it." As much as Bourque is respected and as much as he will be missed, that dilutes some of the salary complications on a team with a $57.8-million payroll at the end of the season. So that will leave Lacroix working to retain Sakic, Roy and Blake, the three major potential unrestricted free agents. Defenseman Jon Klemm also could be unrestricted on July 1, but he also would like to return. He'll be down the line of priorities, and it's conceivable another team could make him an offer higher than the Avs would be willing to go, but chances are he will return as well. Yes, Sakic and Roy both will be back. They're locks. Sakic will win the Hart Trophy and, yes, if he waits and takes offers, someone such as the Stars' Tom Hicks, the Blues' Bill Laurie or the Rangers' Cablevision ownership could come up with an offer that is mind-boggling. But in the aftermath of a championship, it's even more obvious that Sakic and the Avs will find a meeting of minds -- and dollars. After Roy's Conn Smythe performance, any doubts about whether he still is among the NHL's elite should be dispelled. Aebischer isn't ready to be a No. 1 goalie for an elite team, and he might ever be up to that. And more important, Roy has justified a continued big-time investment, and he likes living in the Denver area. So he'll be back, too. That leaves Blake, and he's the most iffy. If the Avs hadn't won the Cup, the deal for him -- in which Colorado gave up the popular Adam Deadmarsh and Aaron Miller, plus draft choices -- would have retroactively been considered a failure. Now if the Ontario-born Blake insists on becoming a free agent and signs with the Maple Leafs, it will at least be considered a deal that brought a shiny short-term return. But the championship also means that a Blake return is a 50-50 proposition. He was intoxicated by the championship run long before he had any champagne, he liked playing in Denver and he knows that this franchise likely isn't going to deteriorate overnight. With Bourque most likely headed for retirement, Blake and Foote could be a devastating and complementary tandem for years to come, if that's how the Avs want to use them. The NHL being what it is, the Avalanche will find it difficult to repeat. But it isn't a franchise heading for a fall, either. Terry Frei of The Denver Post is a regular contributor to ESPN.com. His feedback email address is ChipHilton23@hotmail.com. Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories

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