- Avalanche defenseman Ryan Murray left Friday’s victory over Arizona with an upper-body injury, notes Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. The oft-injured 28-year-old has struggled with Colorado this season, averaging just over 14 minutes per game in 21 contests. The expectation is that Kurtis MacDermid, who had been playing on the wing recently, will now go back to his natural position on the back end to take Murray’s place.
Avalanche Rumors
No Timetable For Bowen Byram's Return
There is no timeline for Avalanche defenseman Bowen Byram to return from his leave of absence, notes Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. The blueliner was a late scratch on Tuesday and Peter Baugh of The Athletic recently reported (Twitter link) that Byram doesn’t have another concussion but is dealing with symptoms that are likely related to the previous ones he has suffered that have gotten to the point where he didn’t feel he could play. The 21-year-old has been a key part of Colorado’s lineup when he has been healthy, logging just shy of 20 minutes a game while chipping in with 11 points in 18 contests. However, given his concussion history, it’s quite possible that Byram will be out for a while.
Gabriel Landeskog Enters COVID Protocol
The Colorado Avalanche will be without their captain tonight, as Gabriel Landeskog has tested positive for coronavirus and entered the league’s COVID protocols. Landeskog’s test was confirmed today, according to head coach Jared Bednar, meaning he’ll miss at least five days. The forward is asymptomatic at this point.
Colorado takes on the Seattle Kraken this evening after their thrilling comeback win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night. The Avalanche are now 21-8-2 on the season despite starting the year 4-5-1. In fact, they are showing just why many considered them a Stanley Cup contender before the season began, routinely running up big goal numbers against every opponent. The Avalanche have scored at least four goals in 10 of their last 12 games, including 20 in their last four.
Without Landeskog, that becomes a little harder to maintain. The 29-year-old forward has been outstanding this season, scoring 14 goals and 35 points through 26 appearances. It wouldn’t be the first time he has scored at a point-per-game pace, but it’s easily the best offensive pace of his career to this point, one that already spans more than 700 games. For now, that number won’t grow any as he watches his teammates from a hotel room, isolating as he waits to test out of the protocol.
Peter Baugh of The Athletic notes that Jack Johnson and Valeri Nichushkin were both in regular sweaters at morning skate. Landeskog is currently the only Colorado player in the protocol.
Hunter Miska And Mikhail Maltsev Recalled To Taxi Squad
- Colorado has recalled goaltender Hunter Miska and winger Mikhail Maltsev to the taxi squad, per the AHL’s transactions log. Miska has struggled in limited AHL action this season with a .797 SV% in four appearances while Maltsev has 17 points in 23 games in the minors plus six appearances with the Avalanche.
Central Notes: Bjugstad, Olausson, Beagle
There’s bad news coming on the injury front for the Minnesota Wild. Head coach Dean Evason said today that forward Nick Bjugstad will be out “for a while” with an upper-body injury. Things certainly haven’t gone smoothly for Bjugstad in his second season with the Wild. In 28 games, he has just five points, and his defensive game has slipped from last year as well. Bjugstad’s entire career has been marred by injuries, and it’s always tough to see when the Minnesota native experiences another setback. Hopefully, he can recover by the end of the season to help out the Wild on a playoff push.
More notes from the Central Division today:
- There’s movement on the prospect front for the Colorado Avalanche, as 2021 first-round pick Oskar Olausson was moved in the OHL today, traded to the Oshawa Generals from the Barrie Colts. Olausson joins Bruins prospect Brett Harrison and Oilers prospect Ty Tullio in Oshawa, where they hope Olausson’s talent can add a punch to their team. Olausson had 25 points in 22 games with Barrie.
- Arizona Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong said today that forward Jay Beagle had lower-body surgery and could miss anywhere between eight weeks and the rest of the season. While a defensive center first and foremost, Beagle had just one point in 21 games with Arizona. He’s in the final year of his contract with a $3MM cap hit.
Ryan Murray Activated From Long-Term Injured Reserve
According to CapFriendly, the Colorado Avalanche activated defenseman Ryan Murray from long-term injured reserve today, moving him to the active roster.
Murray has been out of the Avalanche lineup since November 27, when he was sidelined with a lower-body injury. In 17 games this season prior to the injury, he had four assists, averaging 14:52 per game.
It’s Murray’s first season in Colorado, signing a one-year, $2MM contract in the offseason to join the team after a solid season in 2020-21 with New Jersey.
It seems like Murray’s never played a fully healthy season, but he’s getting a shot to return to the lineup now. With the recent return of Bowen Byram to the lineup, Colorado finally has full health on defense after a rash of injuries this year.
Darren Helm Enters COVID Protocol
The Colorado Avalanche had both their games this week postponed already, but that doesn’t mean the COVID testing has slowed down. Darren Helm is the latest to enter the protocol, where he’ll join Mikko Rantanen, Logan O’Connor, and Pavel Francouz. Nazem Kadri joined the team at practice today after exiting the protocol.
Helm, 34, has played in 27 games for the Avalanche this season after signing a one-year, $1MM contract in the offseason. The veteran forward has scored four goals and six points in those games while averaging fewer than 12 minutes a night. Still, when you’re already down several players due to COVID absences, quality depth is hard to come by.
The Avalanche are set to take on the Anaheim Ducks on January 2, a game that Helm would likely miss if he’s forced out with a positive test result. If he is showing any symptoms he’ll be held out for a minimum of ten days. If asymptomatic, two consecutive negative tests 24 hours apart could get him out of the protocol early.
NHL Postpones Three More Games
The NHL has announced three more postponements, including two that involve the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars. The following games will have to be rescheduled later in the season:
- Chicago Blackhawks @ Winnipeg Jets, December 29
- Dallas Stars @ Colorado Avalanche, December 29
- Colorado Avalanche @ Dallas Stars, December 31
There have now been 70 games postponed this season, most of them coming since December 13. As of now, the three other games scheduled for tomorrow are still on, though the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning both had players enter the COVID protocol earlier today.
For the Avalanche, Blackhawks, and Stars, this means they will not play again until the new year. Winnipeg still has a game scheduled on December 31 against the Calgary Flames. Not only did Chicago see Marc-Andre Fleury enter the protocol today, but also several members of the Rockford IceHogs, including part of the coaching staff. The rampant spread of positive cases in the AHL is having a huge effect on their NHL affiliates, who haven’t been able to recall enough healthy bodies at times this season.
2022 WJC Participants By NHL Team
The 2022 World Junior Championships will get underway from Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta on Sunday. As is the norm and to be expected from the top U-20 competition in the world, the World Junior tournament field is loaded with drafted NHL talent. While most nations don’t have the prospect depth to form a roster completely composed of NHL prospects and those that do have opted to include some younger, future draft picks, there are still a whopping 106 drafted players on WJC rosters. Nine of ten WJC have at least one current NHL prospect and six of those nine have at least ten draft picks. Those players come from 30 of the NHL’s 32 teams, with the Carolina Hurricanes leading the way with ten prospects. While enjoying the WJC action in the coming days, keep track of who may one day be playing at the highest level:
Anaheim Ducks (4):
F Mason McTavish, Canada
D Ian Moore, USA
F Sasha Pastujov, USA
D Olen Zellweger, Canada
Arizona Coyotes (1):
F Dylan Guenther, Canada
Boston Bruins (1):
F Fabian Lysell, Sweden
Buffalo Sabres (4):
F Jakub Konecny, Czechia
D Nikita Novikov, Russia
D Owen Power, Canada
F Isak Rosen, Sweden
Calgary Flames (1):
F Matt Coronato, USA
Carolina Hurricanes (10):
F Nikita Guslistov, Russia
D Aleski Heimosalmi, Finland
D Ville Koivunen, Finland
D Scott Morrow, USA
F Zion Nybeck, Sweden
D Joel Nystrom, Sweden
F Alexander Pashin, Russia
F Vasily Ponomarev, Russia
G Nikita Quapp, Germany
D Ronan Seeley, Canada
Chicago Blackhawks (4):
G Drew Commesso, USA
D Wyatt Kaiser, USA
D Michael Krutil, Czechia
F Landon Slaggert, USA
Colorado Avalanche (1):
F Oskar Olausson, Sweden
Columbus Blue Jackets (4):
F Kent Johnson, Canada
D Samuel Knazko, Slovakia
F Martin Rysavy, Czechia
D Stanislav Svozil, Czechia
Dallas Stars (4):
F Mavrik Bourque, Canada
F Daniel Ljungman, Sweden
F Logan Stankoven, Canada
F Albert Sjoberg, Sweden
Detroit Red Wings (8):
G Jan Bednar, Czechia
G Sebastian Cossa, Canada
D Simon Edvinsson, Sweden
F Carter Mazur, USA
F Theodor Niederbach, Sweden
F Redmond Savage, USA
D Donovan Sebrango, Canada
D Eemil Viro, Finland
Edmonton Oilers (2):
F Xavier Borgault, Canada
D Luca Munzenberger, Germany
Florida Panthers (5):
F Elliot Ekmark, Sweden
D Kasper Puutio, Finland
F Mackie Samoskevich, USA
F Ty Smilanic, USA
F Justin Sourdif, Canada
Los Angeles Kings (6):
F Martin Chromiak, Slovakia
D Brock Faber, USA
D Helge Grans, Sweden
F Samuel Helenius, Finland
D Kirill Kirsanov, Russia
F Kasper Simontaival, Finland
Minnesota Wild (6):
F Marat Khusnutdinov, Russia
D Carson Lambos, Canada
F Pavel Novak, Czechia
D Ryan O’Rourke, Canada
D Jack Peart, USA
G Jesper Wallstedt, Sweden
Montreal Canadiens (3):
D Kaiden Guhle, Canada
F Oliver Kapanen, Finland
F Jan Mysak, Czechia
Nashville Predators (4):
G Yaroslav Askarov, Russia
F Simon Knak, Switzerland*
D Anton Olsson, Sweden
F Fedor Svechkov, Russia
New Jersey Devils (4):
F Alexander Holtz, Sweden
D Luke Hughes, USA
G Jakub Malek, Czechia
D Shakir Mukhamadullin, Russia
New York Islanders (0)
New York Rangers (4):
F Brett Berard, USA
F William Cuylle, Canada
G Dylan Garand, Canada
F Kalle Vaisanen, Finland
Ottawa Senators (5):
F Ridly Greig, Canada
F Roby Jarventie, Finland
D Tyler Kleven, USA
G Leevi Merilainen, Finland
D Jake Sanderson, USA
Philadelphia Flyers (3):
D Emil Andrae, Sweden
F Elliot Desnoyers, Canada
D Brian Zanetti, Switzerland*
Pittsburgh Penguins (3):
G Joel Blomqvist, Finland
G Calle Clang, Sweden
F Kirill Tankov, Russia
St. Louis Blues (3):
F Tanner Dickinson, USA
D Leo Loof, Sweden
F Jake Neighbors, Canada
San Jose Sharks (1):
F William Eklund, Sweden
Seattle Kraken (2):
F Matthew Beniers, USA
D Ville Ottavainen, Finland
Tampa Bay Lightning (0)
Toronto Maple Leafs (3):
F Roni Hirvonen, Finland
F Matthew Knies, USA
D Topi Niemala, Finland
Vancouver Canucks (1):
F Dmitry Zlodeyev, Russia
Vegas Golden Knights (4):
F Jakub Brabenec, Czechia
D Lukas Cormier, Canada
F Jakub Demek, Slovakia
G Jesper Vikman, Sweden
Washington Capitals (1):
F Oskar Magnusson, Sweden
Winnipeg Jets (4):
F Nikita Chibrikov, Russia
F Chaz Lucius, USA
F Cole Perfetti, Canada
F Daniel Torgersson, Sweden
*Switzerland roster pending finalization on Sunday; team has been in COVID-19 quarantine since Thursday but will be ready to begin tournament and participate as schedule, the Swiss announced.
Colorado Avalanche Could Look For Added Defense Depth
Despite being tied for the best points percentage in the Western Conference at the holiday break, the Colorado Avalanche haven’t had their ideal start to the 2021-22 season. The team was expected by many to be far and away the best team in the Central Division, but a gigantic rash of injuries to core players has limited them this year.
They’re definitely not alone in that fact, but a few long-term injuries on defense and some concerning numbers from their goaltenders leave the Avalanche with the sixth-most goals against in the conference (91). That’s why The Athletic’s Peter Baugh suggests in a mailbag piece that the team could look to add on defense if the injury situation there doesn’t improve.
Colorado expected both Bowen Byram and Ryan Murray to play some meaningful minutes this year supplementing one of the best 1-2-3 punches in the league on the back end with Cale Makar, Devon Toews, and Samuel Girard. They’re both out for indefinite periods of time.
A logical trade partner for them is the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have a logjam on defense and are looking to ship out a player to create some roster and salary cap flexibility. Both Justin Holl and Travis Dermott could be moved out, and there’s a decent chance Colorado looks at one of these players.
Holl’s really struggled on both sides of the puck this season (just one assist in 24 games) and was healthy scratched for a few games, but he is playing over 20 minutes a night on one of the better teams in the league. He’s also just one season removed from posting solid defensive results on a shutdown pair with Jake Muzzin. While he hasn’t been able to find that consistency this year, a change of scenery could benefit Holl, who’d also give Colorado some cost certainty as he’s signed through 2023.
There’s also the matter of Dermott, who’s likely a more attractive trade option for Colorado. He’s four years younger than Holl and while he too has struggled offensively (just two points in 19 games), he’s been much less mistake-prone than Holl this year and provides more upside. He’s also signed through 2023 for $500,000 less than Holl, an appealing prospect for a contending and spending team like Colorado.