3:55pm: Landeskog is out “longer than week-to-week” according to head coach Jared Bednar. The injury will cause him to miss “significant time” though there is no exact timetable yet. The team has recalled Jayson Megna from the AHL in the meantime.
10:27am: The Colorado Avalanche are already without star forward Mikko Rantanen for a while, and now captain Gabriel Landeskog will be joining him in the rehab room. The team somewhat ominously announced that Landeskog is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury.
Though the details are few at the moment, a lengthy injury would be a disaster for the Avalanche as they try to hold onto first place in the Western Conference. The team added depth this offseason to deal with this sort of situation, but removing two of the top three forwards from any team would put them in a difficult situation.
Landeskog, 26, actually wasn’t off to quite as dominant of a start this season, despite having seven points in 11 games. His possession numbers hadn’t been quite as good as usual, and that top line—which has been one of the best in the NHL for the last few seasons—hasn’t been quite as impressive. A step down from greatness is still good however, meaning the Avalanche were still safely one of the best teams in the NHL through the first month of the season.
That claim will be tested without Landeskog and Rantanen, though the additions of Nazem Kadri, Andre Burakovsky and Joonas Donskoi are paying dividends already. The trio has 23 points through 11 games and has made Colorado look like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender from top to bottom.
Sounds like something went from sprained to broken. Coach Bednar needs to break out the ‘ol Kevlar gloves for some juggling of chainsaws.
Sounds like an injury he’s been trying to battle through over a few games – and maybe he squeezed in a scope or MRI during their break in games. Hopefully nothing more than torn cartilage, a sprain or a minor fracture.