Avs re-sign Laaksonen and Vaananen through 2006-07

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The Colorado Avalanche announced Tuesday that the team has re-signed forward Antti Laaksonen and defenseman Ossi Vaananen for the upcoming 2006-07 season, for a combined salary of around $1.7 million.

Laaksonen signed with the team prior to the 2004-05 lockout, and made his Avalanche debut last season, ending with 16 goals and 34 assists. Laaksonen is a hometown favorite, having played hockey at the University of Denver in the mid-1990's.

Vaananen played his first game for the Avs just prior to the lockout, after he was acquired from the Phoenix Coyotes March 9 of 2004. Vaananen played the first half of this year before breaking his leg, which sidelined him for the rest of the season, and the first 8 playoffs games of the Stanley Cup Finals. He made his return in the Avs 4-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Avalanche General Manager Francois Giguere says his goal is to keep as much of the team together as possible, although he made a drastic move trading second-leading scorer Alex Tanguay to the Calgary Flames last Saturday. Giguere still has 14 players from last years team that are unsigned, including Rob Blake, Dan Hinote, and both back-up goalies, Peter Budaj and Vitaly Kolesnik.