Colorado Avalanche will miss Valeri Nichushkin for a month

The Colorado Avalanche have been without their captain Gabriel Landeskog for every game this season and the injury bug continues to hit the team… this time with another star. Head coach Jared Bednar said on Tuesday that Valeri Nichushkin will be out a month due to his nagging foot injury. Nichushkin unfortunately had surgery recently on the foot.

Nichushkin suffered the foot injury during last year’s Stanley Cup Playoff run but was able to fight through it. Unfortunately, waiting this long to deal with the injury has turned into a negative thing for him and the team.

If we look at the schedule for the Colorado Avalanche, a month would put us on a date in which the team does not have a game. That being said, they have games on December 7th (at the Boston Bruins) and December 9th (at Philadelphia against the Flyers). As should be expected, however, things can happen between now and then. Despite this timeframe, it is still a play by ear situation.

Prior to the injury, Nichushkin was on pace for 82 goals and roughly 58 assists.

The Avalanche have already been shuffling their lines around significantly this season, trying to find the best pairings in the absence of Landeskog and Darren Helm. Some of the time, it looks as if the team is their true mid-season form. Other times, they have fallen short, including 1-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils.

Oh, by the way, Valeri Nichushkin did not play in that game.

The team’s lines will be interesting to pay attention to during Nichushkin’s absence. Might we see the team go out and try to acquire a player to help out? Or will they just roll with the players they currently have?  It wouldn’t surprise me if they resort to the latter option. They have called and sent down players such as Martin Kaut all season long. While Kaut isn’t the same caliber player as other potential options, it might not make sense to invest in a trade.