Joe Colborne Joseph William Colborne ( born January 30 , 1990 ) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . Colborne was a first round selection , 16th overall , of the Boston Bruins at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft , but never played for the team . He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2011 and spent parts of three seasons in the Toronto organization before joining the Calgary Flames in a 2013 trade . After three seasons with the Flames , Colborne signed as a free agent with the Avalanche in the 2016 off - season . Early Life . Colborne was born January 30 , 1990 , in Calgary , Alberta . His father Paul , an oil and gas executive and former football quarterback at the University of Calgary , encouraged his children ' s sporting pursuits ; Joe grew up practicing his hockey skills on a backyard rink while his sisters Lauren , Melissa and Claire played basketball . In junior high he played AAA hockey for the Edge Mountaineers . Playing career . Junior and College . Colborne was drafted after two seasons with the Camrose Kodiaks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League ( AJHL ) . At the end of the 2007 - 08 season , he was named the 2008 RBC Canadian Junior A Hockey League Player of the Year . A highly touted prospect , Colborne played in the second - tier junior league in order to maintain his eligibility for the NCAA . As a result , he was the highest drafted Junior A player in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and became the first AJHL player to be drafted in the first round since Brent Sutter in 1980 . In 2008 - 09 , Colborne entered his freshman year for the University of Denver Pioneers in the NCAA . Named one of the team ' s Most Valuable Freshman and co - recipient of the Barry Sharp Memorial Award for Denver ' s Top Freshman . After the Pioneers ' elimination from the 2010 NCAA tournament , Colborne signed an entry level contract with the Boston Bruins . He made his debut with the team ' s AHL affiliate , the Providence Bruins , on April 2 , 2010 , tallying two assists in six games . Professional . Colborne joined Providence full - time for the 2010 - 11 AHL season and the Bruins projected that he could become a player capable of playing on the top two lines at either centre or wing . However , after appearing in 55 games for Providence in which he scored 12 goals and 26 points , Boston dealt him to the Toronto Maple Leafs . Colborne was sent , along with two draft picks , to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Tomas Kaberle on February 19 , 2011 . The Maple Leafs assigned him to their AHL affiliate , the Toronto Marlies , where he played an additional 20 games . He was recalled to Toronto for the final game of the 2010 - 11 NHL season and made his NHL debut on April 9 , 2011 . He recorded his first point in the game , assisting on Phil Kessel ' s goal in a 4 – 1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens . Colborne spent the majority of the 2011 - 12 season with the Marlies ; he appeared in 69 AHL games and recorded 39 points . He also appeared in 10 games with the Maple Leafs and scored his first NHL goal on November 22 , 2011 , against goaltender Dwayne Roloson of the Tampa Bay Lightning . Colborne spent the majority of the 2012 - 13 AHL season with the Marlies , where he improved to 42 points in 65 games . He also appeared in five NHL games with Toronto . During training camp prior to the start of the 2013 - 14 season , Colborne was again traded . The Maple leafs sent him to the Calgary Flames on September 29 , 2013 , in exchange for a fourth round selection at the 2014 NHL Entry Draft . Colborne was excited to be dealt to his hometown team and described former players Al MacInnis , Joe Nieuwendyk and Jarome Iginla as his heroes ; " So to have the opportunity to come back and put on the C is pretty special . I ' ve grown up since I was three or four years old wanting to play for the Flames " . In his first full NHL season , Colborne played 80 games , scored 10 goals and added 18 assists . While he was a restricted free agent prior to the 2014 - 15 season , Colborne and the Flames avoided a scheduled arbitration hearing and agreed to a two - year , $ 2 . 55 million contract . In the final year of his contract with the Flames in the 2015 - 16 season , despite being unable to help Calgary return to the playoffs Colborne ' s versatility shone through among the Flames forward lines , establishing career highs across the board with 19 goals , 25 assists and 44 points in 73 games . In the following off - season , Colborne as a restricted free agent was surprisingly not issued a qualifying offer by the Calgary Flames . On July 1 , 2016 , the opening day of free agency , Colborne opted to return to his collegiate roots in Denver , signing a two - year $ 5 million contract with the Colorado Avalanche . Colborne made an instant impact in his Avalanche debut , recording his first career NHL Hat - trick in a 6 - 5 victory over the Dallas Stars on October 15th 2016 , but would then struggle , managing to only put up one goal and three assists in the next 59 games in a record - settingly bad Avalanche season .