Martin Necas, Jack Drury on first day with Avalanche: “It was pretty crazy”

BOSTON — Martin Necas woke up on Long Island and was skating next to Nathan MacKinnon at TD Garden at lunchtime Saturday.

Necas and Jack Drury were traded to the Avalanche on Friday night in a stunning three-team trade that sent Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Hurricanes were waiting for a Saturday night tilt with the Islanders when they found out about the deal.

“Very crazy. I was full of emotion,” Necas said after the Avalanche’s 3-1 matinee loss to the Boston Bruins. “I’ve been there my whole career over here (in North America) so far. It was pretty crazy. I didn’t get much sleep last night.

“It is very impressive to play with two of the best players in the world. You can see it every day when we play against them. It was fun being out there with them. Just need to find my legs, get some sleep and be good tomorrow.”

Trading Rantanen sent shockwaves through the NHL and clearly shook the foundation of the franchise. The club’s top players and coach were visibly shaken, even 18 hours after the deal.

Necas and Drury found out about the deal Friday night, but flew to Boston Saturday morning. They went to the team hotel, had breakfast, made some introductions and got on the field for a game at 13.00.

“You’re in the NHL. You’ve got to be ready for things like this, and no matter what the situation is, be ready to play,” Drury said. “I probably had five minutes to go over systems and stuff. I’m sure that in the next few days here I will hold some meetings and in a way make sure that I get everything down.”

The new guys don’t have much time to get ready for game no. 2. Colorado plays Sunday afternoon at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers, then the team has a day off before the Avs play Tuesday night on Long Island against the Islanders.

Necas, 26, was a first-round pick in the 2017 NHL draft. He is 6-foot-3 and has played mostly on the right wing, but the similarities to Rantanen end there. He is slimmer than Rantanen, but also more nimble on foot.

“Great skater, competitive, skilled, wants to make a difference in the game — that’s Martin Necas,” TSN analyst Craig Button said. “He’s going to fit in really well competitively and skill-wise with what they’re going to do there.”

Another difference: Necas shoots right-handed. It will be an adjustment if he continues to play next to MacKinnon. The reigning league MVP is also a righty and has played almost exclusively with left-shooting wings.

Necas’ career high is 28, and he hasn’t been as effective a shooter as Rantanen. He also set a career high with 71 points two years ago, but is on pace for 90 to 50 games this season.

“Just playing with Marty was obviously really different,” MacKinnon said. “I mean, he’s a completely different player, but it was great to play with him today. I thought he was amazing, better than I thought.”