Denver, Col.- Former Vancouver Giants alternate captain Tristen Nielsen has spun an AHL deal into his NHL debut in a matter of weeks.
The 25-year-old from Fort St. John, B.C., made his debut with the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night.
Nielsen logged 5:25 of ice time in the 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning and punished his opponents with four hits in eight shifts.
“I really liked his game (in the preseason),” Avalanche Head Coach Jared Bednard said prior to the match. “He was highly effective. He found a way to not only play physical in a straight line, sort of power forward game, but he also showed flashes of skill.”
The 5-foot-10, 192-pound forward inked a deal with the AHL’s Colorado Eagles in August of 2025 and cracked the Avs’ training camp roster.
Since then, Nielsen has shot out of the gates with five goals and four assists for nine points in 11 games in the American League, sitting third on the team in points and second in goals.
He even earned a two-year extension one week before his NHL call-up.
Nielsen joins the organization after capturing the Calder Cup with the Abbotsford Canucks in the spring of 2025, where he picked up another nine points (5G-4A), including the game-winning goal to eliminate the Tucson Roadrunners in Round One.
He made the jump to the pros as an undrafted free agent after playing parts of six seasons with the Calgary Hitmen and Vancouver Giants.
Originally selected by the Hitmen with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2015 WHL Prospects Draft, Nielsen potted 82 goals and 93 assists for 175 points over 241 regular-season games with both teams.
He showed flashes of brilliance in his final two campaigns, highlighted by a 65-point (30G-35A) tear in the COVID-shortened 2019-20 season and a blistering 32 points (15G-17A) in 22 twirls in the following ‘bubble’ season.
In his first campaign in Vancouver, Nielsen helped the G-Men claim the 2019 Western Conference Championship with 13 points (3G-10A) in 22 games, though the Giants fell to Prince Albert in a Game 7 overtime heartbreaker in the 2019 WHL Championship Series.
Nielsen has since been re-assigned to the AHL’s Eagles, but could be eligible to return to the NHL lineup this weekend as the Avalanche navigate some depth injuries.
