AVALANCHE SIGNS STIENBURG, POLIN
Jun 20, 2025
DENVER – The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that the team has signed forwards Matthew Stienburg and Jason Polin to a one-year contracts through the 2025-26 season.
Stienburg, 24, missed the majority of the 2024-25 season due to an upper-body injury he suffered on Nov. 1. Prior to the injury, he skated in three regular season contests with the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League and finished the regular season with three points (1g/2a) over five total games. The centerman also made his NHL debut with the Avalanche on Oct. 16 vs. Boston and finished his NHL stint with eight games played. He appeared in three Calder Cup playoff matchups after returning from injury.
The Halifax, Nova Scotia, native joined the Eagles following the conclusion of his senior season at Cornell University and from 2022-25 has totaled 17 points (6g/11a) in 63 career AHL contests. During the 2023-24 campaign, Stienburg posted career highs in goals (5), assists (8) and games played (54). He has added one point (1a) in seven career Calder Cup playoff games.
Selected by the Avalanche in the third round (63rd overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft, Stienburg recorded 46 points (20g/26a) in 73 career NCAA games at Cornell. He appeared in 18 games as a senior in 2022-23 (2g/5a), missing 16 contests due to an injury sustained in late December. As a junior in 2021-22, Stienburg was named to the All-ECAC Hockey Second Team after leading Cornell with 29 points (13g/16a) in 28 games. During his freshman season in 2019-20, Stienburg registered 10 points (5g/5a) in 27 games and ranked first among all ECAC rookie forwards with a +12 rating. He did not play during the 2020-21 campaign due to the cancellation of the Ivy League season.
Prior to joining Cornell, Stienburg played for St. Andrew’s College in Ontario from 2017-19, collecting 128 points (60g/68a) in 93 CAHS league games and producing 32 points (11g/21a) in 20 CISAA (Conference of Independent Schools Athletic Association) outings. He also recorded 10 points (5g/5a) in eight total postseason contests to help St. Andrew’s win the league championship two years in a row. Stienburg served as team captain his second season in 2018-19. The 6-foot-1, 182-pound center joined the Sioux City Musketeers of the USHL following the conclusion of that campaign and registered one point (0g/1a) in three games.
Matthew’s father, Trevor, played nine years of professional hockey, including 71 games with the NHL's Québec Nordiques.
Polin, 26, also missed time due to injury in 2024-25 but tallied 19 points (11g/8a) in 39 regular-season outings for the Eagles. Despite being limited to 39 games, he tied for ninth on the team in goals. The forward suited up in seven Calder Cup playoff games and chipped in a goal, his first career postseason tally as a professional.
Polin made his NHL debut on Jan. 8, 2024 and has skated in nine games for the Avalanche over the last two seasons. He scored his first goal on Jan. 16, 2024 at Ottawa.
The Holt, Mich., native has appeared in 88 regular-season AHL contests from 2022-25, collecting 30 points (15g/15a). He has also appeared in 13 postseason games with the Eagles across the three seasons. Polin originally signed with Colorado as a college free agent on March 29, 2023.
Prior to turning pro, Polin attended Western Michigan University from 2019-23, where he recorded 96 points (60g/36a) in 132 games. During his senior year while serving as team captain, Polin led all NCAA skaters with 30 goals, setting a National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) record. He totaled 47 points (30g/17), ranking second on the team in points, tied for first in power-play goals (6) and recorded five hat tricks. Polin was named the NCHC’s Player of the Year and was a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award as a top player in college hockey.
The 6-foot, 198-pound forward skated in 157 career USHL games with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders from 2016-19, producing 84 points (50g/34a). He served as an alternate captain during his final season in 2018-19 and notched 50 points (30g/20a) while finishing tied for seventh in the league in goals. Polin appeared in six USHL postseason games in 2018-19 and tallied nine points (5g/4a), ranking first on the team in both goals and points.
