The Colorado Avalanche are primed to be perennial Stanley Cup contenders for the next few seasons, led by three of the league's best players in Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen. And the 2022 champs also have a decent prospect pool with multiple players with the potential to play in the National Hockey League in the next few seasons.

Although the Avalanche's prospect pipeline is not one of the better pools in the NHL, simply because the team is in win-now mode and has taken steps to sacrifice draft capital in return for impact players, it has improved over the last few years. It's led by 23-year-old Russian stud Nikolai Kovalenko, who tore up the KHL last year and should be making the transition to North America in a year's time. The Avs had two first-round selections in the 2023 NHL Draft in Callum Ritchie and Mikhail Gulyayev, two players who didn't make this list but will be monitored closely by Avs' brass for the next few years.

Although it's very difficult to predict which players will actually make an impact at the NHL level, Colorado has drafted reasonably well over the last few years, and have a couple of players who could be knocking on the door of making the opening night roster in 2023-24.

5) Oskar Olausson, RW

The 20-year-old Oskar Olausson entered professional hockey at a young age, playing a full season for the American Hockey League's Colorado Eagles at just 19 years of age. Although Olausson never excelled at the junior level which was concerning for his development, he had a decent season with the Eagles, scoring 20 points in 63 games. That was marred by just 3 points in the final 22 games of the season.

The jump to pro hockey is a big move, and the former No. 28 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft is learning that. Olausson is a big body with a wicked shot and patience with the puck, but his development needs to really improve in 2023-24 if he hopes to have a shot at cracking an excellent Avalanche forward core in the next few years.

4) Justus Annunen, G

Justus Annunen has a slim chance to be Alexander Georgiev's backup with the Avalanche at some point next season. The 23-year-old is barely still a prospect after being selected back in the 2018 NHL Draft. He played 41 games for the Eagles last season, improving his save percentage from .893 to .916 in his second professional North American season.

Avalanche GM Chris MacFarland said at the end of the year that Annunen could earn an NHL job, and Colorado hasn't developed an NHL goaltender since Peter Budaj in 2001, per Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now. That's a wild stat, and could be coming to an end if Annunen can make the jump to the big leagues. That's still up in the air, and expect Pavel Francouz to be with the NHL team and Justus Annunen to be sent back to the AHL squad for 2023-24.

3) Jean-Luc Foudy, C

Just like his brother, Jean-Luc Foudy is an exceptional skater and a responsible defensive player, who began playing in the AHL when he was just 18-years-old. Foudy has played three seasons with the Eagles, breaking out in 2022-23 with 36 points in just 46 games. He ended up earning a spot in the AHL All-Star game, and even played nine games with the Avalanche, although he didn't earn a point in his cup of coffee in the show.

Still, Foudy projects to be an NHL player. He missed the Eagles' entire playoff run with injury, but he is still likely the closest player on the Avalanche farm to becoming an everyday player. Colorado would love to see him slot in at 3C sometime in the next few seasons.

2) Sean Behrens, D

Sean Behrens has all of the tools to be an everyday defenseman in the National Hockey League. He has excellent defensive instincts, and crucial to today's game, he both skates and moves the puck exceptionally well. The 2021 No. 61 overall pick will head back to Denver University for his junior season; the 20-year-old projects to be a leader and arguably the team's best blueliner.

After a breakout World Juniors with Team USA, Behrens should make the jump to the NHL as soon as 2024-25, and he is without a doubt the best defenseman in the Avalanche's prospect pool.

1) Nikolai Kovalenko, RW

Russian players who make the jump from the KHL to the NHL are a mixed bag. Players like Artemi Panarin and Kirill Kaprizov became superstars, while KHL superstar Vadim Shipachyov simply couldn't adjust to North America. The Colorado Avalanche are hoping the opposite is true for their No. 1 most intriguing prospect in Nikolai Kovalenko.

The oldest prospect on this list, the 23-year-old Kovalenko just ripped up Russia's top-tier league, scoring an amazing 54 points in 56 games. The right winger is expected to come straight to the Avalanche after finishing his final season in the KHL in 2023-24. The hope is that he can immediately carve out a top-six role in Colorado in 2024 and beyond. As a former sixth-round pick, that would be music to the ears of Avalanche fans.