Colorado Avalanche winger Valeri Nichushkin has been out of the lineup because of an injury since before the New Year. Since then, the Avalanche have gone 5-5. While it could have been a worse record, the latest news on Nichushkin won’t make anybody feel any better.
Appearing in his regular Wednesday spot on Altitude radio, Bednar confirmed that Nichushkin has unfortunately had a setback with his week-to-week injury. While the NHL doesn’t require teams to be ultra specific with injuries, Nichushkin obviously got hit by a shot on the inner part of his foot against the Winnipeg Jets. He finished the day with 11:54 of ice time on just three shifts.
Bednar also elaborated on Nichushkin’s impact on the team:
Jared Bednar, via @AltitudeSR, on Val Nichushkin's impact on the team and timetable of return:
— Adrian Hernandez (@AdoHernandez27) January 22, 2025
"He's an impact player on any line that he plays on and has a huge impact on special teams, too. One player of that caliber makes a big difference."
"Unfortunately, he's had a setback…
We’ve talked about the team’s lack of success when Nichushkin is out of the lineup, but let’s revisit briefly. This season, the Avalanche are 14-12-1 without him on the ice. This actually included a stretch in October when they won four-straight. However, this team needs Nichushkin more than ever at this point in the season.
Ideally, the Avalanche need to go on several long win streaks. The Central Division isn’t an easy division to win, especially with the Winnipeg Jets in Ball Arena on Wednesday evening. Connor Hellebuyck will get the start for the Jets, and Colorado lost 3-0 to Hellebuyck the last time they played (January 11). This is a very bad situation to be in if you are Colorado.
In his radio interview Wednesday, Bednar said that the team just didn’t have their legs against the Minnesota Wild. It was completely obvious, too. As I stated the other day, it was just a sluggish performance. When your head coach admits something like this, it is awful news. It’s something nobody wants to hear, but the truth hurts sometimes. If you’re tired in January, that is a bad look.
While there are still plenty of games left in the regular season, the Avalanche sit in fourth place in the division with 57 points. While facts are facts about the team’s fatigue, the Avs need to figure something out. They cannot keep going on like this and needing to rely on one player to help them perform better. Their current standings should be a wake up call.
The Avalanche recalled Jere Innala and Ivan Ivan after the Nichushkin news came out Wednesday.