ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Colorado Avalanche head into training camp with some holes to fill — and some feelings to mend down the road.
On the eve of camp Wednesday night, Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said there was no timeline for a return of captain Gabriel Landeskog (knee) or forward Artturi Lehkonen (shoulder surgery). But the team will be without forward Val Nichushkin, who's suspended until sometime in mid-November.
It's a situation Bednar plans to address with the team now and again when Nichushkin eventually returns. The talented Russian forward was unavailable for a second straight postseason last May due to circumstances away from the ice. He was suspended for at least six months without pay and placed in stage 3 of the league’s player assistance program. The National Hockey League and National Hockey League Players’ Association announced the news about an hour before the start of the Avalanche’s 5-1 loss to the Dallas Stars on May 13 that left them trailing 3-1 in the second-round series.
“Time heals all wounds,” Bednar said. "We’re going to talk to our team, trying to lay it out for them exactly what we need to see from everyone when it comes to effort and attitude and how much they care and how much they have to show that with their actions.
“Val has kind of let us down in that regard the last couple years. It’s a little different situation when you start dealing with someone’s personal life. I do think Val cares. I do think that he’s a really good teammate. He’s got some growing to do.”
Bednar said the team is waiting to hear back from the league about specifics on when Nichushkin can work out with the team. Nichushkin also abruptly left the team in a 2023 first-round playoff series against Seattle, missing the final five games of the postseason as the Avalanche lost the series 4-3.
Nichushkin's under contract through the 2029-30 season after signing an eight-year, $49 million contract with the Avalanche in 2022.
“I’m sure Val is going to have some things he wants to say to the group,” Bednar said. “But understanding, again, that he is part of our team, and he’s a big, important piece to our team. Whatever we can do to support him and make sure that he is able to do that for a full season, or from November on, we’re going to try and do that. That’s kind of what a team is — it’s a family. You've got to roll with the punches sometimes, but there’s also got to be some forgiveness there. I think Val’s probably got some things that he wants to say to the team as well.”
The Avalanche are banking on a return by Landeskog, who's missed two straight seasons due to a nagging right knee injury that led to cartilage replacement surgery. He hasn't played since lifting the Stanley Cup when the Avalanche defeated Tampa Bay in Game 6 of the final in 2022.
“His timeline is when he says he’s ready to go,” Bednar said of Landeskog. “It’s kind of been the same for a while, and I know he’s encouraged by the progress that he’s made, as are we. But as far as putting a date on it, we’re just not going to do that.”
They're taking a cautious route with Lehkonen, too.
“We’re going to try and give him as much time as we possibly can,” Bednar said.
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Pat Graham, The Associated Press
