Jonathan Drouin won't be a free agent for long. The forward immediately signed a very modest one-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche. He and Nathan MacKinnon had a successful run with the Mooseheads in the QMJHL, earning them 1st and 3rd picks in the 2013 draft. Next season, the two players could well be playing on the same trio, along with Rantanen. We wondered if Nate had anything to do with the Avalanche GM's decision, and now we have our answer. <blockquote class=twitter-tweet><p lang=en dir=ltr>Chris MacFarland said Nathan MacKinnon was definitely an honorary member of the scouting department with Jonathan Drouin. <br><br>Of course we're going to pick Nate's brain. ... He was in full support. <a href=https://twitter.com/hashtag/Avs?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw>#Avs</a>- Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) <a href=https://twitter.com/Peter_Baugh/status/1675264009707180034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw>July 1, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src=https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js charset=utf-8> MacKinnon really helped with this one. You could almost say that GM Chris MacFarland hired Drouin at the simple request of number 29. Now it's Jonathan's turn to prove he can produce with quality players. <blockquote class=twitter-tweet><p lang=en dir=ltr><a href=https://twitter.com/hashtag/Avs?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw>#Avs</a> forward Jonathan Drouin said he and Nathan MacKinnon texted a lot in recent weeks. They were junior teammates. <br><br>I'm just super excited to join the Avs. He said he thinks he needs a fresh start after ups and downs in Montreal. <a href=https://t.co/3M5UZOREji>pic.twitter.com/3M5UZOREji</a>- Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) <a href=https://twitter.com/Peter_Baugh/status/1675906115186438157?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw>July 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src=https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js charset=utf-8>