Colorado Avalanche: Peter Mueller Might Be the Biggest Factor in 2011-2012

The Colorado Avalanche are eager to get started with the 2011-2012 NHL season to quickly prove to the rest of the NHL that last season is a distant memory and that this franchise is ready to compete again.

One player who could go a long way towards helping the Avalanche get back to their winning ways is Peter Mueller.

Mueller was acquired at the trade deadline two seasons ago from the Phoenix Coyotes, and his acquisition was felt immediately.

Mueller posted 20 points, nine of them goals, in 15 games for the Avalanche before a season-ending concussion suffered at the hands of Rob Blake.

Without Mueller's outstanding production, the Avalanche fell to the Sharks in the first round of the playoffs in six games.

Mueller came to camp the following season looking to have a big year based off the immediate success he enjoyed after his trade to Colorado, but was quickly derailed when he suffered another concussion in his first preseason game that kept him out of the lineup for the entire 2010-2011 NHL season.

Now Mueller finally seems ready to put that chapter of concussions behind him and be an impact player for his team again.

One of the major changes that has Mueller and the Avalanche very confident is the new helmet that he will be wearing.

As described by Adrian Dater in a recent piece on Peter Mueller, this helmet is a one-piece helmet that, despite how much lighter it is than other helmets on the market, "...exceeds minimum safety regulations of NHL helmets by as much as 40 percent."

You can read the Ice Warehouse's write up of this helmet right here.

The other addition that will be coming with Mueller's helmet is a new tinted visor to help keep his eyes shielded from the bright glare that can come off of the ice.

All in all, if the helmet is able to do what is claims to do, then Mueller should have a season at full health.

The big question that is going to surround Mueller is how will he be affected by the fact that he hasn't played hockey for a full year now?

It seems silly to expect that Mueller will be able to jump right on the ice and have the same kind of immediate impact that he did when he was first traded to the Avalanche, but that is probably what will be expected of him.

It's quite possible that he can get back to that form, but he's been out of the game for so long at this point that he's going to have to be granted a little bit of time to get back up to the speed of the game.

Despite all of his troubles, Mueller is still very down to earth and is very cognizant of the opportunity that he has and it thankful for the patience that the Avalanche organization and the fans have shown. 

"I've really come to know how much heart is in this organization," Mueller said. "They didn't have to stick by me, but they did and the fans have really helped me get through it. The letters I got picked me up and will never be forgotten."  Denver Post.

I believe that Mueller will most likely come back to play on Matt Duchene's right wing and will play opposite number to rookie sensation Gabriel Landeskog.

If all players are able to come into the regular season playing their best hockey, this could easily become one of the most potent and feared lines in the NHL.

He and Landeskog will also provide something for Matt Duchene that he didn't have all last season: stability.

These guys will be able to get time playing with each other on the same line and will actually be able to form some kind of chemistry. This will be a huge positive as Matt Duchene was basically playing musical chairs with his line mates because of all of the injuries to the team and messages being sent by Joe Sacco.

Mueller will also most likely see a decent amount of power-play time on the point like he did when he was traded. Erik Johnson will most likely quarterback the power play, and Mueller will provide another big one-time shot from the wing that helped create so much offense a couple of seasons ago.

Thinking about the roster the Avalanche have, the return of Peter Mueller now means the Avalanche have a player selected first overall in the draft (Erik Johnson), second overall (Gabriel Landeskog), third overall (Matt Duchene) and eighth overall (Peter Mueller) in their respective years.

Even with all the talk about players like Landeskog, Varlamov, Johnson and Hejda, the success of the Colorado Avalanche could largely be defined by the success of one Peter Mueller.

Kevin Goff is an NHL Featured Columnist and a Featured Columnist for the Colorado Avalanche on Bleacher Report.

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