COLORADO AVALANCHE NEWS

Avalanche D Cale Makar 'tweaked something' and left the game against Seattle, Bednar says

Colorado star defenseman Cale Makar left the Avalanche’s 6-3 victory over Seattle in the middle of the second period with an undisclosed injury and returned for less that 30 second...

NOVEMBER 6 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Nathan MacKinnon - Five apples in win MacKinnon recorded five assists, including two on the power play, and added four shots on net and a plus-3 rating in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Kraken.

Impact MacKinnon had his best game of the season in a powerful display of playmaking. He has nine multi-point effort over 13 contests so far, though this was the first time in 2024-25 he's recorded more than two points. The 29-year-old superstar is up to 25 points (six goals, 19 helpers) while adding 48 shots on net and a minus-3 rating.

NOVEMBER 6 • ROTOWIRE

Mikko Rantanen - Scores twice Tuesday Rantanen scored a pair of goals, one on the power play and the other into an empty net, in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Kraken.

Impact Rantanen had gone eight games without a goal and had just one assist over his previous three contests before breaking out of the slump Tuesday. The winger is up to six tallies, 17 points, 36 shots on net and a minus-3 rating across 13 appearances, with eight of his points coming on the power play.

NOVEMBER 6 • ROTOWIRE

Justus Annunen - Ends team's skid Annunen stopped 17 of 20 shots in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Kraken.

Impact Annunen didn't have a great performance against a team that has struggled to score, but the Avalanche gave him plenty of support. He's now allowed 10 goals on his last 74 shots, but he's picked up two wins over three games in that span. Annunen is at a 5-2-0 record with a 2.64 GAA and an .893 save percentage over eight outings this season. The Avalanche's crease remains up for grabs, but Annunen has done better than Alexandar Georgiev or Kaapo Kahkonen at giving the team chances to win.

NOVEMBER 6 • ROTOWIRE

Lehkonen scores go-ahead goal in return from injury as Avalanche beat Kraken 6-3

Arturri Lehkonen scored the go-ahead goal on a power play in his season debut and Nathan MacKinnon had five assists as the Colorado Avalanche beat the Seattle Kraken 6-3

NOVEMBER 6 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Cale Makar - Tweaks something in Tuesday's game Makar (undisclosed) tweaked something during the second period of Tuesday's game versus the Kraken, Corey Masisak of The Denver Post reports.

Impact Head coach Jared Bednar did not have an update on Makar's status after the game. The defenseman left originally in the second period, then took one shift in the third before ultimately exiting the contest. His potential absence looms large for the Avalanche -- Makar has yet to be held off the scoresheet with five goals and 18 helpers through 13 contests this season after posting two assists prior to his exit Tuesday. If he can't play Thursday in Winnipeg, Oliver Kylington or John Ludvig would draw into the lineup.

NOVEMBER 6 • ROTOWIRE

Justus Annunen - Draws start Tuesday Annunen will tend twine in Tuesday's home matchup versus Seattle, Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette reports.

Impact Annunen will make his eighth appearance and sixth start of the 2024-25 campaign. The Finnish netminder has posted a 4-2-0 record, .899 save percentage and 2.58 GAA. The Kraken sit 22nd in the league with 2.77 goals per game through 13 contests.

NOVEMBER 5 • ROTOWIRE

First Shift: Avalanche injury updates | NHL.com Valeri Nichushkin to return on November 15

NOVEMBER 4 • NHL.COM

Valeri Nichushkin - Expected back Nov. 15 Nichushkin (suspension) is set to return to action against the Capitals on Nov. 15 as long as his reinstatement goes as planned, Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette reports.

Impact Nichushkin will have to wait five more games to make his 2024-25 season debut after entering Stage 3 of the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. Assuming he is reinstated as expected, Nichushkin will likely push for a top-six role and could be in the mix for power-play minutes as well. Despite being limited to just 54 regular-season games last year, Nichushkin still managed to set new career highs in goals (28) and points (53).

NOVEMBER 4 • ROTOWIRE

Suspended Valeri Nichushkin cleared to practice with Avalanche, remains in player assistance program

The Colorado Avalanche say suspended forward Valeri Nichushkin has been cleared to begin practicing with the team

NOVEMBER 4 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Nikita Prishchepov - Called up Monday Prishchepov was recalled by the Avalanche on Monday.

Impact Prishchepov made his NHL debut Saturday against Nashville and logged three hits and two shots on goal in 13:30 of ice time. Although he was sent down after the loss to the Predators, he'll rejoin the Avalanche as the team continues to deal with several injuries.

NOVEMBER 4 • ROTOWIRE

Valeri Nichushkin - Receives green light to practice Nichushkin (suspension) was cleared to practice with Colorado on Monday.

Impact Nichushkin remains in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. He was suspended for at least six months in May for violating the treatment plan and still has to apply for reinstatement. Still, this is a step in the right direction for the 29-year-old forward. He amassed 28 goals, 53 points, 158 shots on net and 74 hits across 54 regular-season appearances in 2023-24.

NOVEMBER 4 • ROTOWIRE

Nikolai Kovalenko - Called up from minors Kovalenko was elevated from AHL Colorado on Monday.

Impact Kovalenko continues to move between levels despite having played in 12 games for the Avs this season. In those outings, the 25-year-old winger has registered one goal on 12 shots, three assists and 22 hits while averaging 13:41 of ice time. Until the team gets fully healthy, which may take a while given all their injuries, Kovalenko could find himself the odd man out -- though he has plenty of time to cement himself as a full-time NHL option.

NOVEMBER 4 • ROTOWIRE

Ivan Ivan - Recalled by Colorado Ivan was recalled by the Avalanche on Monday.

Impact Ivan was sent to AHL Colorado on Sunday, but he'll rejoin the NHL club a day later to provide additional help while the Avalanche deal with a slew of injuries. Over 12 appearances with the Avalanche this year, Ivan has tallied two goals and two assists while averaging 11:11 of ice time.

NOVEMBER 4 • ROTOWIRE

Miles Wood - Placed on injured reserve Wood (upper body) was placed on injured reserve Monday, retroactive to Oct. 28.

Impact Wood sustained an upper-body injury against Chicago on Oct. 28 and was expected to miss approximately 7-10 days. As a result, it isn't very surprising to see him officially land on injured reserve, especially considering how many injuries the Avalanche are dealing with. Ivan Ivan, Nikolai Kovalenko and Nikita Prishchepov were called up by the Avs on Monday and should help to fill in while Wood is unavailable.

NOVEMBER 4 • ROTOWIRE

Seattle takes losing streak into matchup with Colorado

The Seattle Kraken head into the matchup with the Colorado Avalanche after losing three games in a row

NOVEMBER 4 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Avalanche activate F Artturi Lehkonen from injured reserve The Colorado Avalanche activated forward Artturi Lehkonen from injured reserve on Sunday.Lehkonen had been sidelined since undergoing should...

NOVEMBER 3 • NEWSOBSERVER.COM

Ivan Ivan - Reassigned to AHL Ivan was reassigned to AHL Colorado on Sunday.

Impact Ivan will head back to the AHL following Artturi Lehkonen's return from IR. The 22-year-old Ivan was solid in his first NHL stint, tallying two goals and four points in 12 games.

NOVEMBER 3 • ROTOWIRE

Artturi Lehkonen - Activated from IR Lehkonen (shoulder) was activated from Injured Reserve on Saturday.

Impact It now appears official that Lehkonen will rejoin the Avs on Tuesday against Seattle for his season debut. The 29-year-old winger, who underwent shoulder surgery in late May, should slot back into Colorado's top six after totaling 16 goals and 34 points in 45 games last year.

NOVEMBER 3 • ROTOWIRE

Devon Toews - Supplies helper in loss Toews logged an assist and went minus-2 in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Predators.

Impact The helper was Toews' first point in six games since he returned from a lower-body injury. The defenseman has maintained a top-four role, but he's recently played on the second pairing, while Samuel Girard has remained alongside Cale Makar. Toews has two assists, 11 shots on net, six blocked shots, four hits, four PIM and a minus-5 rating through eight outings in a challenging start to the campaign.

NOVEMBER 3 • ROTOWIRE

Casey Mittelstadt - Manages power-play helper Mittelstadt provided a power-play assist, two shots on goal and a minus-2 rating in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Predators.

Impact Mittelstadt had a four-game point streak end Wednesday, but he got back on the scoresheet in this contest. The 25-year-old has been productive in a second-line role and on the first power-play unit this season, earning 14 points (six with the man advantage) through 12 games. Mittelstadt has added 32 shots on net and a minus-8 rating, with the latter mark a product of the Avalanche's overall struggles early in the campaign.

NOVEMBER 3 • ROTOWIRE

Cale Makar - Takes point streak up to 12 games Makar scored a power-play goal on three shots, added an assist and blocked three shots in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Predators.

Impact Makar opened the scoring at 2:54 of the second period and helped out on Nathan MacKinnon's tally in the third. This was Makar's second multi-point effort in a row and his seventh in 12 contests this season. The superstar defenseman still hasn't been held off the scoresheet, compiling five goals, 16 helpers, 35 shots on net, 17 blocked shots, 11 hits and a minus-8 rating. He's earned 10 of his 21 points on the power play, with both of those figures good for a share of the league lead in each category.

NOVEMBER 3 • ROTOWIRE