Gabe Landeskog spent Monday working as the No. 1 center for the Colorado Avalanche — at least for a few minutes.
Landeskog participated in the Avs’ practice, skating as the center between Valeri Nichushkin and Artturi Lehkonen on the top line for a few drills, with Nathan MacKinnon having the day off. Landeskog skated Saturday with the Colorado Eagles while the Avs were out of town.
Does that mean Landeskog could skate with the Eagles again at some point this spring?
“We’ll see,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “He’s ramped up his days on the ice, the workload in those days. Then we just wait for the next day and re-evaluate and see how he responds. Then we make a plan from there.”
There’s still no timeline for when he might try to return. When pressed further on the idea of Landeskog potentially playing in a game for the Eagles before trying to return to the Avs lineup, Bednar didn’t rule it out as a possibility.
“Yeah,” Bednar said. “If he gets there, yeah.”
The Eagles have five games remaining in their regular season, including two home games this coming weekend. The final two are the following weekend in Tucson, Ariz. They have also qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Because Landeskog is on long-term injured reserve, he could be loaned to the Eagles on a conditioning stint for a maximum of six days or three games. He would not have to come off LTIR or count against the Avs’ salary cap and 23-man roster during the stint.
Having Landeskog play for the Eagles could be a way to test his knee in game conditions before dropping him into a Stanley Cup Playoffs contest, but that is also a league with more physical play and more borderline — or worse — hits than typically seen in the NHL.
Landeskog hasn’t played since the 2022 Stanley Cup Final. He’s trying to come back from knee cartilage replacement surgery in May 2023, a procedure no NHL player has returned from before.
The Avs captain has been skating more frequently with the team over the past few weeks. He is skating for longer with the team and has been taking some light contact in drills. There was one instance before the most recent three-game road trip when he put a move on Miles Wood in the slot, absorbing some contact and falling to the ice.
Among the issues that Landeskog has had since the surgery are other ailments that have popped up. He’s had several setbacks since the May 2023 operation, the first three of which have been detailed in his ongoing docuseries, “Clean Sheet.”
Landeskog had a torn patella tendon in December 2003. He had issues after experiencing pain in a part of his knee separate from the surgery area during a long skate in February 2024. The ensuing PRP injection and hyaluronic acid shot, which is done to help lubricate the knee, caused a setback with his quad muscle above the knee.
He had another one in mid-September after another hyaluronic acid shot, which in part led to him breaking down in tears shortly after being recognized on opening night at Ball Arena in October.
Landeskog said in an earlier episode of “Clean Sheet” that he has days where he feels great and like he could play that night. He’s had days recently where he’s skating with the Avs, and it looks like he might be ready to give it a go. Part of the challenge with his comeback is the setbacks that can occur, even when it isn’t something directly tied to his surgery.
Footnotes: The Avs have four guys on the active roster who are currently injured — forwards Martin Necas and Jonathan Drouin, plus defensemen Samuel Girard and Josh Manson. Bednar said after practice Monday that he hopes all four will be able to play before the end of the regular season, which is Sunday evening in Anaheim.
Want more Avalanche news? Sign up for the Avalanche Insider to get all our NHL analysis.
Originally Published:
