Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog has been settling in nicely in his return to the NHL. It’s been a long road back for the Swedish forward, who missed almost three full seasons due to injury, but after finally suiting up in the 2025 NHL Playoffs, it feels right to see Landeskog back on the ice full-time.
Landeskog Is Only Warming Up
In five playoff games last season, Landeskog tallied one goal and four points, while being a plus-4. He also provided a boost in the locker room and for the fans. This is his first regular season since 2021-22, when the Avalanche won their third Stanley Cup.
He’s now in the fifth season of an eight-year, $56 million deal, worth $7 million annually. The second overall pick from the 2011 NHL Draft has been the heart and soul of the Avalanche, and having him back has propelled the team to the top of the league standings, with a 13-1-5 record and showing no signs of slowing down.
Related: Peak of the Mountain: 3 Depth Avalanche Point Producers
It’s been a weird season for the 32-year-old captain, who has already seen three goals and an assist taken off the board. On paper, he scored his first goal in 1,347 days against the Anaheim Ducks on Nov. 11, but after a few offsides and other circumstances, he should have five goals to his name rather than the two he’s been credited with. His secondary assist on the Victor Olofsson goal against the New York Islanders on Nov. 16 was also discredited.
Following his first goal, Landeskog said:
“It was nice to move on. I think it was my second longest goal drought [of] my career, so it was nice to just be done with it. Had a decent amount of looks and some bounces that don’t go your way and that’s the way the game works. Sometimes you get easy ones and sometimes you’ve really got to work for them. There’s a lot of guys in this room and in this league that make it look easy to score in this league and it’s not. Nonetheless, big two points for us and it’s a good team over there, so that’s important.”
Officially, Landeskog has two goals and six points in 19 games to rank 15th on the team in points. However, if those three goals and an assist had been counted, Landeskog would be tied for seventh in points. It’s those fine margins that could change the narrative in his first season back.
Regardless, Landeskog has been adjusting well. Since the start of November, he has two goals and three points, including goals in back-to-back games against the Ducks and Buffalo Sabres (which should have been a multi-goal game). He’s also averaging 13:41 of ice time (TOI), the lowest of his career. Despite his overall average of 18 minutes or more, it makes sense that head coach Jared Bednar is sheltering his ice time early on.
Related: A Look Back: Gabriel Landeskog’s Unique Path to Success
Playing him on the third line with Jack Drury and Olofsson has been effective so far. He’s also seen some time on the second power-play unit. However, expect Landeskog’s TOI to increase as he adjusts to the grind of a long season.
No matter how this campaign goes, it’s nice to see Landeskog finally back on the ice. He’s been a boost to the team, and fans have gone wild whenever he’s scored. Positivity is high, Mile High, in Denver as the Avalanche aim for a strong campaign with their captain back at the helm.
