Lehkonen To Miss Another 6-8 Weeks
- Without much specificity into the severity of the injury, the Colorado Avalanche have been without top-six forward, Artturi Lehkonen, for the last month after he suffered a neck injury in the team’s game against the Seattle Kraken on November 9th. After joining the team for practice yesterday, the expectation is that Lehkonen will not return for another six to eight weeks, narrowing his return to January or February (X Link). Currently sitting at fourth in the Western Conference, Colorado will only have a few weeks to see how Lehkonen returns before potentially making a move at the trade deadline on March 9th.
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Lehkonen Skates Before Practice Friday, Still No Timetable For Return
- Avalanche winger Artturi Lehkonen skated ahead of Colorado’s practice today, relays Corey Masisak of The Denver Post (Twitter link). The 28-year-old has been out for the last month due to a neck injury but was able to shed his neck brace late last month. There remains no timetable for his return but returning to the ice is at least a step in the right direction. Lehkonen had three goals and five assists in a dozen games before the injury.
Avalanche Reassign Oskar Olausson
The Avalanche reassigned forward Oskar Olausson to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles on Thursday, per a team announcement.
Olausson, 21, was a first-round pick of the Avalanche in 2021. He’s struggled to adapt to the pro game since wrapping up his junior career in 2022, posting 28 points in 83 AHL games dating back to last season. After being sent to the minors prior to the start of this season, the Avalanche brought Olausson up earlier this week and played him in Tuesday’s contest against the Ducks, in which he recorded two shots on goal in 11:50 of ice time playing on a line with Ross Colton and Mikko Rantanen.
It’s been a bit of a disappointing transition for Olausson, who was ranked as high as 13th overall by some scouts heading into the 2021 draft. He was a consensus late-first/early-second-round pick, though, so while he hasn’t flashed his ceiling at the pro level yet, there’s still time for the 6-foot-2, 181-pound youngster to develop.
The Avalanche hope a bit of confidence injected by the recall can help jumpstart his game with the Eagles. Before the call-up, Olausson had just one assist in his last five AHL games.
The Swedish winger is in the first season of his entry-level contract after being slide-eligible for the last two seasons. Carrying a cap hit of $863,333, Olausson will be a restricted free agent in 2026.
Bowen Byram Not Likely To Miss Time
Burakovsky, who’s now missed 20 games with the injury, played just six contests this season after a groin tear kept him out for the back half of the 2022-23 regular season and the playoffs, during which the Kraken defeated the Avalanche for their first-ever series win and took the Stars to seven games in the Second Round. The missed time showed in his play to start the season, going without a point and recording a -4 rating through his first four contests. He showed signs of life in his fifth game, though, notching two assists and a +1 rating in nearly 18 minutes of ice time against the Hurricanes two days before sustaining his upper-body injury.
With such a rich recent injury history, Hakstol signaled the Kraken are being cautious with Burakovsky’s return. He’s been skating in a non-contact jersey for nearly two weeks. Since signing a five-year, $27.5MM deal with the Kraken in the summer of 2022 after hoisting the Stanley Cup as a member of the Avalanche, Burakovsky has 13 goals and 41 points in 55 contests. If he can return to the lineup Thursday against the Devils, he’s projected to play a second-line role alongside Jared McCann and Alexander Wennberg.
- Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar informed media today that defenseman Bowen Byram is “hopefully” healthy enough to play tomorrow after leaving yesterday’s win over the Ducks with an upper-body injury. Bednar had confirmed earlier that Byram’s injury is not head-related, a sigh of relief considering his well-documented history of concussions at just 22 years old. Even if Byram can’t play, Bednar said superstar blueliner Cale Makar is an option to return tomorrow against the Jets after missing the last two games with a lower-body injury. Overall, it’s positive news for an Avalanche defense that remains without Samuel Girard for the foreseeable future as he undergoes treatment in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. Byram has played in all 25 Avalanche contests this season, logging five goals, three assists, and a -3 rating in 20:09 of average ice time.
Cale Makar Doubtful To Return Tonight
After the team’s practice this morning, head coach of the Colorado Avalanche, Jared Bednar issued several roster updates before the team takes on the Anaheim Ducks tonight. Most notably, after missing Colorado’s last game, Bednar asserted that defenseman Cale Makar is doubtful to return tonight (X Link).
Aside from Makar being doubtful, Bednar also mentioned that forward Andrew Cogliano would not be in the lineup due to a lower-body injury, and although Valeri Nichushkin missed practice due to being sick, he is expected to play tonight. Although they will be missing several key players in their lineup, this is exactly the situation the Avalanche were hoping to weather as they spent the entire offseason with a primary goal of addressing the team’s depth.
- Before Bednar had spoken to reports about the lineup tonight, the Avalanche announced they had recalled forward Oskar Olausson for tonight’s game. Colorado’s first-round selection in the 2021 NHL Draft, Olausson has yet to play for the Avalanche this season, after playing in one game last year. Playing for their AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles, Olausson has five goals and eight points in 20 games, sitting seventh on the team in scoring.
Cale Makar Will Not Play Tonight
Peter Baugh of The Athletic is reporting that Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar will miss tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Kings with a lower-body injury. Baugh relayed the news from Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar who said that Makar is out for tonight and that was all he knew for now.
Makar is currently one of the frontrunners for the Norris Trophy as his seven goals and 27 assists in 23 games have him tied for fourth in NHL scoring with Vancouver Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes. He has finished in the top-3 in Norris Trophy voting in each of the past three seasons and is making a strong case for it to be four years in a row. He won the award back in 2022 and was also the Conn Smythe Trophy winner in the same year.
Makar left the Avalanche game last night against the Anaheim Ducks just before the end of regulation. He was unavailable during the overtime period and the shootout, which the Avalanche eventually lost.
If he is out for any length of time it would be a big blow to a Colorado club that currently sits atop the Central Division with a 15-6-2 record. They were on a hot streak having won seven of eight prior games to dropping their last two to the Ducks and Arizona Coyotes.
With Makar sidelined, it appears that rookie Sam Malinski will dress in his second career NHL game. The 25-year-old signed as an undrafted free agent this past March after playing four years at Cornell University. In 17 AHL games this season with the Colorado Eagles, Malinski has three goals and six assists.
Ross Colton Avoids Suspension, Earns Fine
- Colorado Avalanche forward Ross Colton was fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for a “dangerous tripping” on Anaheim Ducks rookie Leo Carlsson. Colton was assessed a penalty on the play and now is deducted $5,000 as well. An offseason trade addition for the Avalanche, Colton has scored seven goals and 12 points in 23 games this year.
What Your Team Is Thankful For: Colorado Avalanche
As Thanksgiving and the holiday season approaches, PHR will be taking a look at what teams are thankful for in 2023-24. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Colorado Avalanche.
Who are the Avalanche thankful for?
Although Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen are MVP-caliber players in their own right, it is difficult to imagine a successful Avalanche team without defenseman Cale Makar on the blue line. Not only is Makar one of the best offensive defensemen in the entire league, there is an argument to be made that he is the best all-around player in the league, given his ability to shut down other team’s best players.
Through 21 games so far this season, Makar has six goals and 26 assists, which would put him on pace for a 125-point season, which would be one of the best seasons put together since the days of Paul Coffey and even Bobby Orr. On the defensive side of the puck, Makar holds an impressive +20 rating, a 55.5% CF%, and a career-best 92.1% oiSV%, all while averaging over 24 minutes of ice time per night.
Even at $9MM per year for this season and the following three, the contract that Makar is under is beginning to look like one of the bigger steals in the league today. With a Calder Trophy, Norris Trophy, Conn Smythe Trophy, and a Stanley Cup ring all in his collection before the age of 26, Makar is on pace to be one of, if not the best defenseman who has ever played in the NHL.
What are the Avalanche thankful for?
Improved depth.
Last season, in an attempt to repeat as Stanley Cup champions, the Avalanche were severely knocked by injuries, using a total of 27 forwards, 11 defensemen, and five goaltenders. With a decent amount of cap space this past summer, Colorado used a majority of that to improve the depth of their team, bringing in Ryan Johansen, Ross Colton, Miles Wood, Tomas Tatar, Jonathan Drouin, Joel Kiviranta, Fredrik Olofsson, and Ivan Prosvetov.
From the forwards that were brought in, the Avalanche have gotten 25 goals, and 23 assists, allowing forwards such as MacKinnon and Rantanen to not carry such a burden on their shoulders. Although team captain Gabriel Landeskog still finds himself on LTIR, as well as the relatively recent placement of Artturi Lehkonen, Colorado has still maintained a 15-6-0 record, sitting in third place in the Western Conference.
As seen in the team’s playoff loss to the Seattle Kraken in the first round of last year’s playoffs, depth is an important part of any successful team, and up to this point, it has paid off well for the Avalanche. 
What would the Avalanche be even more thankful for?
More stability in the net.
Last season, his first with the team, Alexandar Georgiev started in 62 games, winning 40 of them, while posting a .918 SV% and a 2.53 GAA. Although the wins are largely a team statistic, Georgiev still placed in the top 10 for Vezina Trophy voting after spending much of his career as a backup for the New York Rangers.
Once again leading the league in wins for goaltenders with 13, Georgiev is not producing the same way he did last season. Through 18 starts, he holds a .898 SV% and a 44.4% quality start percentage according to Hockey Reference’s analysis, a 21.7% drop from last season.
Thankfully, the defense playing in front of him has shored up a lot of his shortcomings through the season so far, but as any Stanley Cup winning can attest to, once in the playoffs, a team will rely on their goaltender to steal a game or two. Georgiev has been solid in his last three starts, but Colorado will need him to play with more consistency between the pipes going forward if they are to compete for the Stanley Cup again this spring.
What should be on the Avalanche holiday wish list?
One more goal-scorer.
As of right now, Colorado sits second in the league in goals, but due to their improved depth, Rantanen and Valeri Nichushkin are the only two players on the team with double-digit goals. Especially on the powerplay, as the Avalanche are currently sitting in 18th place in the league with a 19.77% completion rate, another goal-scorer could turn this team into a monster come playoff time.
Although plenty could change leading up to the deadline, Colorado may look for buy-low short-term options to improve their goal-scoring capabilities, as Mike Hoffman of the San Jose Sharks could be a potential fit in the next several weeks. However, given the current state of the standings in the Eastern Conference, and a potential inability to keep him on a long-term deal next offseason, there may be a winger playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins that could be up for grabs.
Currently, on the last year of a five-year, $30MM contract, there is a possibility that the Penguins will make Jake Guentzel available at the deadline if they do not climb the standings in the next couple of weeks. Hitting 40 goals twice in his career up to this point, it would be a near-perfect addition to the Avalanche, who should be looking for a winger to complete their top-six heading into the playoff season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Avalanche Recall Sam Malinski
The Colorado Avalanche recalled defenseman Sam Malinski from the AHL’s Colorado Eagles on Thursday, per a team announcement. Malinski, 25, comes to the NHL roster to be injury insurance for the team’s upcoming three-game road swing through the southwestern United States.
Colorado is without defenseman Samuel Girard as he undergoes treatment in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program, which has allowed players like Malinski and Caleb Jones to slide into the lineup. Jones seems to have won out a spot as the team’s de facto seventh defenseman, playing in eight straight games while logging an assist and a +4 rating.
Meanwhile, Malinski has just one appearance this season, his first in the NHL. The undrafted free agent signing out of Cornell in March logged a +1 rating, one shot on goal, and one hit in 12:02 of ice time against the Kraken on November 13.
The Lakeville, Minnesota-born defender may not have ideal size for the pros, standing at 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds. However, his transition to professional life in the AHL has been rather smooth. Malinski has picked up where he left off after a strong showing with the Eagles to close out 2023, sitting tied for third on the team in scoring with nine points in 17 contests.
Malinski is under contract for one season after this at a cap hit of $850K. He will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights in the summer of 2025.
Snapshots: Vilardi, MacEwen, Foudy, Willman
The Winnipeg Jets have shared that Gabriel Vilardi is not yet ready to return, although he is continuing to progress in his recovery from a knee injury. The forward is expected to be a game-time decision for the Jets’ Thursday night matchup. Vilardi suffered an MCL sprain early on in the season and was expected to miss four to six weeks.
The 24-year-old Vilardi has only managed three appearances with Winnipeg this season, netting one assist and a -1. It’s his first year with the club after joining via trade in June, moving to Winnipeg alongside Alex Iafallo and Rasmus Kupari in the deal that sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to the Los Angeles Kings. Winnipeg tendered a qualifying offer to Vilardi and was headed towards salary arbitration, before the avoided arbitration with a two-year, $6.9MM contract.
Vilardi had the best season of his young career last year, netting 23 goals and 41 points in 63 games with the Kings. He also added four points in five playoff games. The scoring brings his career totals up to 41 goals and 79 points through 155 games, stretched across the last four seasons. Vilardi was previously drafted 11th overall in the 2017 NHL Draft and made his NHL debut in the 2019-20 season. He is one of four players from the 2017 draft class’ Top 15 to not yet eclipse 200 career NHL games, alongside Cody Glass, Cal Foote, and Lias Andersson.
Other notes from around the league:
- Ottawa Senators forward Zack MacEwen has been fined $2,018.23 – the maximum allowed under the CBA – for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty taken in Monday’s game against the Florida Panthers. MacEwen targeted Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk late in the game, receiving a five-minute match penalty for a check to the head in the game. MacEwen has appeared in six Senators games this season, scoring one assist and totaling 25 penalty minutes.
- Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar shared that forward Jean-Luc Foudy is suffering from a lower-body injury. Bednar also shared that the team doesn’t yet know when to expect Foudy back. Foudy has yet to play this season and is currently on the team’s injured reserve. He scored 36 points in 46 AHL games last season. He was also rewarded his first nine NHL games last year, going without a point and recording a -3.
- The New Jersey Devils have assigned forward Maxwell Willman to the Utica Comets of the AHL. Willman has appeared in four games with the Devils this season, netting one goal. He’s also appeared in seven AHL games, scoring four goals and seven points. The 28-year-old forward has totaled 54 NHL games and seven points across his career, making his debut with the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2021-22 season.