Artturi Lehkonen Returning To Colorado Avalanche Lineup
After suffering a concussion on December 3rd, Colorado Avalanche forward Artturi Lehkonen is expected back in the lineup for this afternoon’s contest on the road in St. Louis against the Blues, says Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. Lehkonen was never placed on IR with the injury, missing three games and seven days total. At last report on Thursday, the veteran had been placed in concussion protocol. According to Durando, Lehkonen will skate on the top line this afternoon alongside Mikko Rantanen and Valeri Nichushkin.
Colorado’s injury woes this season have been well reported, the consistent and significant injuries sending the reigning Stanley Cup Champions into a fight for a playoff position even at the one-third mark of the season. After losing Nichushkin for over a month, the team then found out they’d be without perennial Hart Trophy candidate Nathan MacKinnon for four weeks, only compounding the issue. Beyond just their stars, which also includes Gabriel Landeskog, who has yet to play this season, Colorado has lost a number of secondary and depth options for small and large portions of the season.
Lehkonen has been one of the bright spots for the Avalanche so far this season, recording seven goals and 11 assists through 22 games, well on his way to a career-year. The team will need him to keep that scoring pace up in order to do their best to navigate other injuries, like MacKinnon’s, but it’s not yet known what sort of lingering effect, if any, will come with the concussion.
Staying on the injury front, Durando adds that Darren Helm and Evan Rodrigues are not yet ready to return to the lineup. Helm, who has yet to play this season, has been close to returning and was even a possibility to play this weekend, but will clearly need to wait a little bit longer to make his season debut. Rodrigues hasn’t played since suffering a lower-body injury against the Vancouver Canucks back on November 23rd, but had been a bright spot amid the injuries, with nine points in his first 18 games for Colorado.
Cal Burke Sent Back To AHL
- Following their game last night, the Avalanche announced (Twitter link) that they’ve sent forward Cal Burke back to AHL Colorado. Burke played just under seven minutes last night in his second career NHL appearance. The Avs are off until tomorrow and at that point, it’s possible that Burke will be recalled.
Valeri Nichushkin Activated Off IR
It has been a rough season when it comes to injuries for the Avalanche to the point where they have been without five of their top six forwards recently. However, they will welcome a key part of their attack back tonight as winger Valeri Nichushkin has been activated off injured reserve. He had missed the last month after undergoing ankle surgery.
The 27-year-old had a breakout year for Colorado last season, setting new career highs across the board offensively and becoming a legitimate impact power forward. The Avs rewarded him with a max-term extension to make sure he didn’t hit the open market as he inked an eight-year, $49MM pact two days before free agency opened up.
With Nichushkin only having that one breakout year, the move appeared to carry some risk but he got off to a blistering start this season before the injury as he had seven goals and five assists in his first seven contests while playing on the top line in Gabriel Landeskog’s absence. With Colorado still dealing with a long list of injuries, he’ll almost certainly be in a similar role right away.
Speaking of that injury list, the Avs are still without defensemen Josh Manson, Bowen Byram, and Kurtis MacDermid while Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon, and Artturi Lehkonen highlight the list of six forwards that are still injured. Of those, Lehkonen is the closest to returning as he’s listed as day-to-day.
Five Players Clear Waivers
Dec 9: All five players have cleared, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Rooney, Benson, Kaut, and Carpenter can now be assigned to the minor leagues, while Berglund’s contract will be terminated.
Dec 8: It’s a busy Thursday on the waiver wire, as Kevin Rooney of the Calgary Flames, Tyler Benson of the Edmonton Oilers, Martin Kaut of the Colorado Avalanche, and Ryan Carpenter of the New York Rangers are all available for claim, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
Boston Bruins defenseman Victor Berglund has also been placed on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a contract termination.
Rooney, 29, has not worked out quite as well as the Flames had hoped when they signed him to a two-year, $2.6MM contract in July. After scoring six goals and 12 points in 61 games last season for the New York Rangers, the depth forward has just a single assist in 17 matches for Calgary.
With today’s recall of Matthew Phillips, it appears as though the Flames will go in a different direction for their bottom six. Rooney’s contract will likely keep him from being claimed, though, meaning he can stay with the organization and try to get his game back on track. By moving him to the minor leagues, $1.125MM of his $1.3MM cap hit would come off the books.
For Benson, it’s not quite so rosy. The 24-year-old has played two games with the Oilers this season, barely seen the ice during them, and has no contract security past this year. The 32nd overall pick from 2016 has never been able to stick in the NHL despite strong numbers in the minor leagues, and appears to be a potential non-tender candidate next summer as an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent.
Kaut, 23, already cleared waivers at the beginning of this season, but had landed a regular spot in the Colorado lineup since and needed them again to go back to the minor leagues. The 2018 first-round pick has three points in 18 games this year, and was on the ice for multiple goals against in last night’s 4-0 loss to the Bruins.
The Avalanche haven’t been able to find any mix of depth forwards they are happy with, and continue to make changes on a near-daily basis. Kaut’s waiver placement doesn’t necessarily mean he’s headed back down, given all of the injuries they have. He also could be claimed, given his relatively young age and draft pedigree.
Carpenter, like Rooney, hasn’t been able to find the same level of play he had last season with his new team. The Rangers forward has just three points in 21 games and has become a fringe option, moving in and out of the lineup. Even with his familiarity with head coach Gerrard Galant, the Rangers can’t keep putting Carpenter out there without some more consistent play.
Berglund, 23, was picked 195th overall in 2017 and signed his entry-level deal in 2020. It is set to expire at the end of the year and he has barely played this season, meaning the two sides are just splitting a little early so he can chase a job somewhere else. The Swedish defenseman will be an unrestricted free agent and is likely headed back to Europe.
Colorado Avalanche Recall Brad Hunt
The Colorado Avalanche continue their daily roster changes, recalling Brad Hunt from the minor leagues. The veteran defenseman (who is no relation to Avalanche forward Dryden Hunt) will slot in on defense while Jacob MacDonald moves back to forward. After clearing waivers, Martin Kaut was sent down to make room.
Hunt, 34, has shown he’s still too good for the minor leagues this year, racking up six goals and 20 points in 22 games. This is his first time playing in the AHL since 2016-17, when he forced his way up to the NHL despite being an undersized, undrafted defenseman. There was no stopping Hunt in the minors; he has 229 career points in 309 AHL games, including 63 goals. Last season with the Vancouver Canucks, he added 17 points in 50 games, showing he could still be a capable offensive piece at the highest level.
This likely won’t be a long-term fix, though, as the Avalanche are close to getting two impact forwards back. Artturi Lehkonen and Valeri Nichushkin are both very close to getting back into the lineup, with the latter even being a game-time decision this evening. The defending champs are just 13-10-1 this season thanks to a huge number of injuries, and will try to start turning the corner as they get players back.
Alexandar Georgiev will get the start against his former team.
Nichushkin, Helm Expected To Return Soon; Lehkonen In Concussion Protocol
If the playoffs began today, the reigning Stanley Cup Champions, the Colorado Avalanche, would be on the outside looking in. Colorado’s fall isn’t for a lack of talent and granted, losing Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky to free agency wasn’t exactly helpful, but instead the primary issues seem to fall squarely on injuries. The team has lost more than it’s fair share of man games to injury as they approach the one-third mark of the season and just when things couldn’t seem to get worse, Nathan MacKinnon was ruled out for four weeks.
There could be some help coming soon though, reports Brennan Vogt of Colorado Hockey Now, who spoke with Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar during his media availability earlier today. According to Bednar, forwards Darren Helm and Valeri Nichushkin could be available to play in tomorrow’s game. Nichushkin, one of the team’s premier players, was off to a blistering start with 12 points in seven games before an injury sidelined him for 17 games. Helm, a veteran utility player, has yet to suit up for Colorado this year, but given the injuries the team has dealt with, getting his versatile presence back in the lineup could pay bigger dividends than it might seem. Also of note, Bednar disclosed that forward Artturi Lehkonen, who was injured in Colorado’s game on Saturday, is currently going through concussion protocol.
Colorado Avalanche Make Several Roster Moves
December 8: The Avalanche announced this afternoon that Ranta has been reassigned to the AHL. No other corresponding move was announced. The forward played 11:50 in last night’s loss to the Bruins, getting a shot off but not recording a point.
December 7: With Nathan MacKinnon added to the list of injuries for the Colorado Avalanche, the team has made several transactions today to reshape the roster. Sampo Ranta, Ben Meyers, Cal Burke, and Andreas Englund have all been recalled. Alex Galchenyuk, who cleared waivers yesterday, has been loaned to the AHL.
Ranta has played in 16 total games for the Avalanche over the last three seasons but is still looking for his first NHL point. The 22-year-old forward was a third-round pick in 2018 and has received just a handful of minutes in most of his appearances, something that could change now that the team is so banged up. MacKinnon joins nearly a dozen other regulars that are out of the lineup at the moment.
Meyers, meanwhile, is still in his first full season of professional hockey after signing with the Avalanche last spring. The 24-year-old undrafted forward was a star at the University of Minnesota, and made his NHL debut down the stretch, scoring one goal in five games. He’s been up with the big club for three appearances this year, recording another goal. A responsible two-way player in college, he could be asked to play the middle of the ice, depending on how the lineup card shakes out.
Burke, 25, would be making his NHL debut should he enter the lineup, after signing with the club in 2021. He too was an undrafted college free agent, and has 11 points in 21 games for the Colorado Eagles this season. The team appears to be going with older, more polished two-way players to fill out the bottom of the roster instead of turning to prospects with higher upside like Oskar Olausson.
Englund was always going to be recalled, given the team’s lack of defensive options at the moment. With Josh Manson, Kurtis MacDermid, and Bowen Byram all out, the team had just five defensemen on the roster going into today.
Unfortunately, the team lost Jayson Megna on waivers to the Anaheim Ducks yesterday, forcing them into an additional recall. The depth chart is being tested, as they now have just six forwards assigned to the AHL that are under NHL contracts.
Nathan MacKinnon Expected To Miss Four Weeks
As reported by Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic Tuesday night, Colorado Avalanche star center Nathan MacKinnon is expected to miss roughly four weeks with an upper-body injury suffered last night against the Philadelphia Flyers.
The report comes after head coach Jared Bednar told reporters this morning that MacKinnon was “going to miss some time” with the injury.
It appears that ghosts of Vegas Golden Knights past are coming to haunt the Avs this season, with an injury list that alone rivals the core of a playoff-contending team. Mikko Rantanen and J.T. Compher are now the team’s only healthy forwards with double-digit points, pushing the Avs to use even the fringes of their minor-league depth.
The pure length of the injury list is compounded by the quality of players, none higher than MacKinnon. The freshly-minted highest-paid player in the league is already living up to his future contract extension, leading the Avalanche with 34 points in 23 games.
Colorado now turns to Rantanen, a natural winger playing center on the second line with some other depth pieces out, to be their first-line pivot in all likelihood. They’ll also need much more out of players like Alex Newhook, who has nine points in 23 games.
Jean-Luc Foudy, Evan Rodrigues, Artturi Lehkonen, Shane Bowers, Valeri Nichushkin, Gabriel Landeskog, Darren Helm, Bowen Byram, Josh Manson, and Kurtis MacDermid comprise the team’s injury list. Out of all of them, Foudy, Nichushkin, and Lehkonen appear the closest to returning.
Colorado Avalanche Send Three To AHL
2:15pm: After the Avalanche lost Megna on waivers, they were under the 18-man roster limit. Hudon has been recalled to make the team compliant again.
9:10am: With Nathan MacKinnon the latest player to go down for the Colorado Avalanche, the team will have some tough decisions on how to organize a lineup moving forward. Today, they have sent Andreas Englund, Anton Blidh, and Charles Hudon back to the AHL, though they may not stay there for long.
Hudon, 28, made his Colorado debut last night, playing over 15 minutes and recording seven shots on goal. The talented winger is a potential fit for the top-six, but likely doesn’t fit any lower than that. With both Alex Galchenyuk and Jayson Megna on waivers today to create some additional flexibility, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Hudon back up for tomorrow’s game.
Englund, meanwhile, has been playing regularly for the team as they deal with injuries to Josh Manson, Bowen Byram, and Kurtis MacDermid. The 6’3″ defenseman has one assist and five penalty minutes in six games, seeing just over ten minutes of ice time last night.
Unless a defenseman is being activated, Englund (or someone else from the minor leagues) will be needed once again for tomorrow night. The team only has five other healthy defensemen on the roster.
Anaheim Ducks Claim Jayson Megna; Alex Galchenyuk Clears
The Anaheim Ducks have added a depth forward, grabbing Jayson Megna off waivers from the Colorado Avalanche. Alex Galchenyuk, who was on waivers with him, has cleared according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
Megna, 32, certainly didn’t seem like much of a target given the fact that he hasn’t scored a single point in 14 games this season, but the Ducks must see something they like in the veteran minor league forward. He comes with a league-minimum salary and 162 games of NHL experience, though it’s hard to believe he’ll be a regular in the Anaheim lineup.
It has been nearly six years since Megna scored a goal in the NHL, his last coming on February 9, 2017. During his stint with Colorado this season, he was averaging just over seven minutes a night and recorded six shots on goal.
Galchenyuk, meanwhile, can now be assigned to the minor leagues, though it is unclear if the Avalanche will do so after losing Nathan MacKinnon last night. The team is without nearly a dozen roster players, so might need to keep the veteran forward up for the time being.