Avalanche Notes: MacKinnon, Blackwood, Wedgewood
Colorado Avalanche star forward Nathan MacKinnon will dress tonight for game four of the Western Conference Final against the Vegas Golden Knights. MacKinnon suffered a lower-body injury in game three, but that won’t stop him from taking the ice as Colorado looks to stave off elimination and avoid being swept by the Golden Knights. The news means Colorado will have both MacKinnon and star defenseman Cale Makar in their lineup tonight. Makar had missed game one and game two with an upper-body injury.
The importance of MacKinnon’s health to the Avalanche cannot be overstated. The 30-year-old is Colorado’s best player, and is one of the most impactful scorers in the game. MacKinnon won the Rocket Richard Trophy this past season with 53 goals. His total of 127 points in 80 games marked the second-highest point total of MacKinnon’s career. While his production has been down a tick in the playoffs, he is still tied for the third-most points in this year’s playoff scoring with 15 in 12 games. He’ll hope to add to that number tonight and extend the Avalanche’s season.
Other notes from Colorado:
- The Avalanche are making a change in net, and will start MacKenzie Blackwood in goal rather than Scott Wedgewood, according to reports from the team’s optional morning skate. Blackwood hasn’t played against the Golden Knights, but did see some time in net in the second round. Blackwood got his first start of the playoffs in game four of the second round against the Minnesota Wild. He stopped 19 of 21 shots in the Avalanche’s 5-2 win, but lost his job as starter in the following game after surrendering three goals on 13 shots in an eventual Avalanche comeback victory. The 29-year-old, who is signed at a $5.25MM AAV through 2029-30, went 23-10-2 in the regular season with a .904 save percentage.
- The move to start Blackwood means Wedgewood, 33, may have already played in his final game of his 2025-26 season. Wedgewood’s 2025-26 campaign stands as, without question, the strongest of his career. The longtime backup seized the No. 1 role in Colorado, playing in a career-high 45 games. Wedgewood improved on his stellar form from last season, posting a 31-6-6 record and a .921 save percentage. While he was not named as a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, he and Blackwood took home the William M. Jennings Trophy. Wedgewood is under contract for one more year at a $2.5MM cap hit.
Lineup Notes: Stone, Makar, Wedgewood
Vegas Golden Knights captain Mark Stone returns to action in Game 3 tonight on home ice, reported by ESPN’s Emily Kaplan. He had been dealing with a lower-body injury, missing five straight games.
Unable to come away with a win before heading out to Vegas, it only makes things more difficult for Colorado, as they’ll desperately try to get back on track tonight. Without their captain, the Golden Knights have gotten massive performances from Brett Howden, the 28-year-old netting nine goals this postseason, needing three more to match his entire output in the regular season. Pavel Dorofeyev, no longer such an underrated sniper, has also stood out with 10 goals, and finally, one can’t skip over Mitch Marner and Jack Eichel who are playing at an elite level.
The efforts have helped Vegas go 4-1 without Stone, tied 2-2 with Anaheim after his first absence which caused concern, but quickly sending them home afterward. Now, up 2-0 over the Presidents’ Trophy winners, a top forward is back in the mix, having posted seven points in nine playoff games thus far. Brandon Saad is likely to be the odd man out; the 33-year-old two-time Stanley Cup Champion added two helpers in five games while Stone was injured as a key veteran presence.
More lineup news from tonight’s Game 3:
- Stone’s opponents will also likely have a big boost tonight, as “all signs point to” Cale Makar returning, according to Kaplan. Missing the first two games of the series with an upper-body injury, Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar was cryptic on his status earlier today, but if there was ever a time he was needed, even if not back to full health, it’s tonight with their backs close to the wall. Skating 24:59 in his playoff action to this point, Makar’s usage may indicate his overall health for what lies ahead in Colorado’s hopes to turn the tide and advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
- While there was some speculation that the Avalanche could make a goalie change after losing the first two games, that’s not the case. Instead, Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette was among those to note that Scott Wedgewood will indeed get the nod once again. The 33-year-old posted the best GAA (2.02) and SV% (.921) league-wide during the regular season but has lost three of his last four starts, allowing eight goals on 70 shots in that span.
Evening Notes: Nurse, Vladar, Wedgewood
On yesterday’s edition of Daily Faceoff Live, Jeff Marek speculated on a trade scenario for the Edmonton Oilers to move on from Darnell Nurse. Marek suggested that San Jose, known to be seeking a defenseman, could offer up one of their several young forwards, such as Collin Graf in a hypothetical deal.
Western Conference foes who could eventually meet in the playoffs, it begs the question if San Jose would do such a favor to take on Nurse’s $9.25MM cap hit, running through the 2029-30 season, when he’ll be 35. Not only that concern, it would simultaneously give the Oilers a real asset such as Graf. Somewhat quietly amidst a group full of more widely recognizable young talent, the 23-year-old Graf tucked away 21 goals last year for the Sharks, a huge step for the undrafted 6’1” winger who enters restricted free agent status this summer and will command a big increase from his entry level deal.
With declining metrics in terms of possession, and no longer likely to break the 40-point mark in a season again anytime soon, Nurse leaned more into a physical role, surpassing the 100 penalty minute mark for the first time. What’s going for the 30-year-old is that he is highly durable, playing in all 82 games and eating minutes at just under 21 a night. Only Dmitry Orlov and Mario Ferraro skated more for the Sharks this year in that metric.
In theory, Nurse presents an upgrade over Ferraro, but by no means is the longest tenured Shark a top 10 highest paid blueliner in the league, allowing San Jose to allocate those funds elsewhere. The team will have over $14MM to burn with practically their entire defense core hitting free agency this summer, but General Manager Mike Grier will be cautious as he puts the finishing touches on a rebuild which is set up for a decade of noise ahead.
Elsewhere across the league:
- With breakout goaltender Dan Vladař showing preference to remain in Philadelphia long term, Anthony DiMarco of The Daily Faceoff looked into what an extension would look like. A huge part of their resurgence, Vladar’s 2.42 goals against average was third in the entire league this year. One has to go back to 2019-20 as the last time the Flyers got that level of goaltending, coming from who was a second-year-pro Carter Hart, results the now Golden Knight has been chasing ever since. Luckily for the Flyers, they’ll retain the 28-year-old for another year at his steal of a $3.35MM AAV, but the sooner they handle business for the future, the better. DiMarco reported that the Flyers would be willing to give him five years of term with a contract hovering around $6MM per season. If it gets done, the former Flame would join the likes of Travis Konecny and Owen Tippett as the longest signed players on the team, fully signifying their belief that he’s the netminder they’ve been long searching for.
- The Colorado Avalanche are turning back to Scott Wedgewood tonight for Game 1 against Vegas, confirmed by the team. MacKenzie Blackwood meanwhile, of whom he’s split duty with all year, started the last two games of the previous round against Minnesota. However, he was yanked after the first period after letting in three goals of the deciding contest, as Wedgewood backstopped the team to a comeback victory. With all respect to the 33-year-old, whose breakout campaign has shattered his career best statistics across the board, Wedgewood had to stop just seven shots in his 43:14 versus the Wild one week ago. Still, clearly the switch panned out, and he’ll lead the Avs out for the Conference Finals tonight. It’s new territory for Wedgewood who prior to this year had just four playoff appearances across his whole career, none of which were starts.
Avalanche Activate Scott Wedgewood; Reassign Jack Ahcan, Isak Posch
Goaltender Scott Wedgewood is back with the Colorado Avalanche after welcoming the birth of his second child. He has been activataed from the non-roster list, while defenseman Jack Ahcan and goaltender Isak Posch have been reassigned to the minor-leagues.
Ahcan has played three games since being recalled before Wednesday’s shootout loss to the Anaheim Ducks. He recorded one assist, three shots on goal, and a minus-one in the trio of appearances. Those marks bring Ahcan up to two points in nine NHL games this season. He also leads the AHL’s Colorado Eagles defense in scoring with 24 points in 29 games. The 28 year old has proven a reliable utility-knife down Colorado’s depth chart. He will return to a minor-league role and stay a top call-up option for the next time the Avalanche are in need.
Posch did not play with the Avalanche on what was the first call-up of his pro career. He has recorded a 12-5-5 record and .902 save percentage in 20 games as an AHL rookie this season.
Wedgewood missed Colorado’s last two games on his personal leave. Top goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood took over the net and posted a 1-1 record, while allowing eight goals. Wedgewood has earned the lion’s share of Colorado’s starts this season, while Blackwood recovered from injury. He has recorded a dazzling 20-3-5 record and .918 save percentage in 30 games, both just better than Blackwood’s 14-3-1 record and .911 Sv%. The two will continue to operate as one of the best one-two-punches in the league now that Wedgewood is back with the team.
Avalanche Recall Isak Posch, Move Scott Wedgewood To Non-Roster Status
The Avalanche have made a pair of roster moves as they get set to embark on a road trip beginning Sunday in Toronto. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled goaltender Isak Posch from AHL Colorado. To make room on the roster, netminder Scott Wedgewood has been designated to non-roster status.
Posch is in his first full professional season after signing an entry-level deal with the Avs last March following two seasons at St. Cloud State University. His first taste of the pros has been successful as the 23-year-old has a 2.45 GAA along with a .902 SV% in 20 games with the Eagles and he’ll now be rewarded with a few days of NHL pay for his efforts. He’ll serve as Mackenzie Blackwood’s backup until Wedgewood is able to return.
As for Wedgewood, this is expected to be a short-term absence. His wife just gave birth and the team is granting him a bit of extra time with his family. He’s expected to rejoin the Avalanche on their road trip. It has been a breakout year for the 33-year-old who has a 2.14 GAA with a .918 SV% in 30 starts this season, earning himself a two-year, $5MM extension for his efforts.
Avalance Reassign Trent Miner, Scott Wedgewood Expected To Return
Avalanche’s Scott Wedgewood Leaves Due To Injury
The Colorado Avalanche announced mid-game that goaltender Scott Wedgewood will not return versus Vancouver due to an upper-body injury. It is not immediately clear what happened to the netminder, but given that he managed to complete the second period, hopefully his absence is cautionary, and the veteran will not need to miss any additional time.
Wedgewood, 33, has been one of the top stories so far this season. In his first full season with Colorado, he has posted a remarkable 13-1-3 record, with a .921 save percentage and 2.08 goals-against-average. Such performance fetched himself a one-year extension, which was inked in mid-November. Although it is hard to ignore the strength of the team in front of him, Wedgewood has played at such a level as a backup with Arizona and Dallas in the past, as he and Colorado have been a perfect match.
Mackenzie Blackwood, another attainable goalie who flashed enough potential elsewhere to earn an envious position with the Avalanche, took over for the third period. Now, updates on Wedgewood will be watched closely, but given the recent play of the NHL’s top team, they will likely not miss a beat.
West Notes: Wedgewood, Brossoit, Mammoth, Canucks
Avalanche goaltender Scott Wedgewood has been added to Canada’s list for potential Olympic participation, reports TSN’s Darren Dreger (Twitter link). It has been a breakout season for the 33-year-old who took on the starting job when Mackenzie Blackwood was injured to start the season and he hasn’t relinquished it. Through 17 appearances, he has a 13-1-2 record with a 2.09 GAA and a .918 SV%. While his international experience is also rather limited (just a World Juniors appearance in 2011), Wedgewood has certainly done well enough to warrant late consideration, especially with Canada’s goaltending group still in some question.
More from out West:
- Laurent Brossoit’s tenure with the Blackhawks hasn’t gone as planned. Signed to a two-year deal in 2024, he hasn’t played a second of hockey since then thanks to multiple injuries. That should be changing soon, however. The netminder told Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times that he’s actually ahead of schedule in his recovery from his most recent hip surgery which has him likely nearing a conditioning stint with AHL Rockford in the near future. Once cleared to do so, he can spend up to two weeks in the minors before needing to be added to Chicago’s roster or placed on waivers.
- While the trade market is still in the process of getting established this early in the season, several teams know they will be looking to buy when the opportunity arises. One team that hasn’t done a lot of that in-season lately is the Mammoth but it appears that will be changing. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman notes in his latest 32 Thoughts column that Utah is definitely looking to add to its current group. While they’ve scuffled a bit as of late in the win-loss column, they enter play tonight in a Wild Card spot and with them projecting to finish the year more than $5MM under the salary cap per PuckPedia, they have ample flexibility on that front to make a move along with one of the better prospect pools in the league.
- Canucks goaltender Kevin Lankinen could rejoin the team on their current road trip, relays Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre (Twitter link). It was announced yesterday that he was taking a leave for personal reasons but it appears that his absence will be a short-term one. Meanwhile, MacIntyre adds that their other netminder Thatcher Demko along with winger Nils Hoglander are expected in Los Angeles on Saturday to skate with the team, suggesting they’re nearing a return as well. Vancouver has been decimated with injuries in the early going this season but some help could be on the horizon.
Avalanche Sign Scott Wedgewood To One-Year Extension
2:03 p.m.: Wedgewood’s contract extension carries $1.9MM in base salary and a $600,000 signing bonus, PuckPedia reports.
12:22 p.m.: The Avalanche announced they’ve signed goaltender Scott Wedgewood to a one-year extension. The deal is worth $2.5MM, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. He was ticketed for unrestricted free agency next July, but now delays that by another 12 months.
A career backup, Wedgewood has been forced into the starter’s role for Colorado to begin the year with Mackenzie Blackwood missing most of October with a lower-body injury. The 33-year-old has made it hard to justify giving the lion’s share of starts to Blackwood upon his return, though. He’s put together a league-best 10-1-2 record through 14 starts, accompanying that with a .913 SV% and 2.26 GAA. Even behind Colorado’s top-five defense, that’s good for six goals saved above expected to rank 14th in the league, per MoneyPuck.
It’s all the more impressive that his performance has come amid the most taxing workload of his eight-year NHL career by a significant margin. He’s started 14 of 17 games for the Avs, including five of seven since Blackwood was reinstated. He obviously won’t hit the 68 starts he’s on pace for, but he’ll still undoubtedly pass his previous career high of 32 starts and 37 appearances at this rate.
They aren’t expecting the veteran to be a long-term solution, particularly with Blackwood coming off a career year and him being signed through 2029-30 at a cap hit of $5.25MM. It’s still a worthy reward for one of the league’s more unheralded breakouts through the first several weeks. While Colorado’s elite two-way play so far has done most of the heavy lifting, Wedgewood has still given them significantly above-average netminding that’s likely helped them back a few extra points as they’ve rocketed off to an 11-1-5 start, the best in the league.
Colorado acquired Wedgewood from the Predators early last season in exchange for the promising but struggling Justus Annunen, as the Avs swapped out both of their opening-night goalies in separate deals before Christmas. He only got 18 starts behind Blackwood after the move but was exceptional with a 13-4-1 record, .917 SV%, and 1.99 GAA. The late bloomer is now on pace to post above-average save percentages in four of the last five seasons.
A third-round pick by the Devils back in 2010, Wedgewood debuted for them in the 2015-16 season but didn’t see NHL action again until a 20-game run with the Coyotes in 2017-18. He spent two more full seasons in the minors after that before working his way back into the bigs with New Jersey in 2020-21. He hasn’t seen the minors since, aside from a conditioning stint while he was Jake Oettinger‘s backup in Dallas in 2022-23. His career numbers now read as a 72-55-26 record with eight shutouts, a 2.82 GAA, and a .907 SV% in 168 appearances.
It’s a $1MM raise over Wedgewood’s current $1.5MM cap hit, as he’s now in the back half of the two-year deal he signed with Nashville in free agency in 2024. He and Blackwood were already one of the more cost-effective goalie duos in the league this season at a combined price tag of $6.75MM, and $7.75MM for next season isn’t too bad, either. Colorado now has $91.25MM in commitments for 2026-27, affording them $12.75MM in projected cap space assuming a $104MM upper limit with seven roster spots to fill, per MoneyPuck.
Image courtesy of Kirby Lee-Imagn Images.
West Notes: Flames, Wedgewood, Emberson, Guenther
Heading into the season, many expected the Flames to be selling before the trade deadline. Instead, they made a move to add, picking up Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost from Philadelphia. But that hasn’t stopped teams from calling Calgary GM Craig Conroy about his top veterans, center Nazem Kadri and blueliners Rasmus Andersson and MacKenzie Weegar. However, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported on Saturday that Conroy is telling inquiring teams that he doesn’t plan to move those players. Kadri and Weegar are signed to long-term contracts but Andersson’s expires in 2026, making him extension-eligible as of July 1st. Friedman adds that Calgary is getting more confident that they can get a new contract in place with the 28-year-old who will be eyeing a sizable raise from his current $4.55MM AAV.
More from the Western Conference:
- Avalanche goaltender Scott Wedgewood is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury, mentions Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette (Twitter link). He will, however, accompany the team on the road so he shouldn’t be out for too long. The 32-year-old has a 2.40 GAA and a .910 SV% in his first nine games with Colorado after being acquired from Nashville at the end of November. Trent Miner is already up on recall so the Avs won’t need to bring anyone else up.
- Oilers defenseman Ty Emberson played in his 80th career NHL game last night, meaning he will become a restricted free agent this summer, notes Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal. Had he not reached that mark, he would have been a Group Six unrestricted free agent. Emberson has nine assists, 70 blocks, and 78 hits in just under 15 minutes a night through 50 games with Edmonton this season. Leavins suggests a three-year deal worth $1.5MM per season might be a reasonable contract for the sides to come to although some of the recent comparables have come in a little below that.
- Utah winger Dylan Guenther has been upgraded as out day-to-day, relays Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). The 21-year-old has missed a little more than three weeks with a lower-body injury. Before getting hurt, Guenther was scoring at pretty much the same rate as last season, tallying 16 goals and 18 assists in his first 40 games after putting up 18 tallies and 17 helpers in 45 outings in 2023-24.