ST LOUIS, MISSOURI - APRIL 10: Tory Pitner #2 of the Denver Pioneers looks on during warm ups before the Division I Men's Ice Hockey Semifinal against the Western Michigan Broncos held at the Enterprise Center on April 10, 2025 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Tyler Schank/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) | NCAA Photos via Getty Images The Top 25 Under 25 is a collaboration by Mile High Hockey staff members. Seven writers have ranked players under the age of 25 in the Colorado Avalanche organization as of September 1, 2026. Now, we’ll count down each of the 25 players ranked.
Name: Tory Pitner Age: 20 Position: RD Height: 6’1” Weight: 190 lbs Likely 2026-27 Team: University of Denver Pioneers 2025 Rank: #13 Final Rank: #17 High Rank: #9 (Adrian) Low Rank: #32 (Ryan) 2025-26 Statistics: University of Denver Pioneers: 6 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 TP
Tory Pitner comes to the Avs system from the University of Denver, having just won an NCAA championship with the Pioneers this past season. While Pitner might not be the biggest defenseman in the 2024 draft class, where he was selected by Colorado in the sixth round, there are plenty of skills Pitner possesses that make him a super intriguing and promising prospect. Throughout his time at DU thus far, Pitner has made himself stand out by being an overall extremely reliable defenseman. The 20-year-old is very sound positionally during games, and uses his skating to put pressure on opponents. He also makes an effort to play his opponents physically, which can be seen in games, and that play makes a positive difference during games consistently as well. A scout broke down Pitner’s game to show these attributes on video in a series of tweets.
DEN2 skating ability & acceleration has always stood out to me. His ability to open up & explode to space makes him such a reliable defender. Here is a perfect example of the habit of 3 hard strides off a change of direction. Also note the stick detail that forces an early dump. pic.twitter.com/kWKQEH7Oe2 — Dave Horne (@CoachDHorne) August 7, 2026
Looking forward to the 2026-27 season, Pitner is set to return to the DU Pioneers for a third season with them. Injuries have really taken a toll on his development as he only played six games with the Pioneers last season. The depth of the Pioneers’ blueline has also limited Pitner’s opportunities and he’s only scored two points in his NCAA career. For those reasons Pitner fell on our list this year as we hope he can bounce back and get his development back on track.
Hopefully the right shot defenseman can get more time on the ice with the team next season as a junior to get more reps under his belt and show the offensive upside which got him drafted by the Avalanche. Pitner will need to make some career decisions in the near future, so it’s not unreasonable to think that he might be a candidate to play for the Eagles within the next couple of years. 2026 Top 25 Under 25 #25 Nikita Novosyolov #24 Axel Eloffson #23 Teddy Lechner #22 Ivan Yunin #21 Luka Cloutier #20 Matthew DiMarsico #19 Shawn Carrier #18 Domenick Fensore