Heading into the 2024-25 NHL season, the Colorado Avalanche knew they’d be missing key players. Jonathan Drouin, Artturi Lehkonen and Logan O’Connor were coming off offseason surgery, and Valeri Nichushkin was suspended until mid-November after being placed in Stage 3 of the NHL player assistance program.
On top of that, Gabriel Landeskog has been on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) since 2022; his last game was Game 6 of the 2022 Stanly Cup Final against the Tampa Bay Lighting. He was scheduled to return later in the 2022-2023 season, but he suffered a significant setback and had to miss another season. He has practiced alone with trainers and participated in skating drills with his teammates, but it’s still been a waiting game to know when the captain will return. Now, according to insider information, the wait might continue for much longer.
Landeskog Suffers Another Setback
When Gino Reda asked TSN insider Pierre LeBrun for an update on Landeskog’s injury on “Insider Trading: Whitecloud hit sparks mass reaction,” LeBrun said:
“The update is that they just don’t know. He had a surgery in May of 2023 – a kind of knee surgery that no NHL player has ever come back to play from. He wants to play; he intends to come back. The initial timeline of when he had that surgery of May 2023 was 12 to 16 months, while last week (Nov. 11-15, 2024) marked the 18th month since that surgery. He still hasn’t resumed normal hockey activities with the Avalanche.”
LeBrun also questioned what he would look like when he is cleared to return after missing so much time. Will he return to the 60 to 70-point form, playing in the top six and on the power play, or will he have to take a significant step back and be put in a bottom-six role? LeBrun mentioned that Landeskog could end up like Nicklas Backstrom, who could no longer keep up with the physicality of the NHL due to lingering health issues and has stepped away from the game indefinitely.
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
In recent weeks, the Avalanche have started to see players return, but they’ve also suffered setbacks. Lehkonen and Nichushkin returned, but Ross Colton, who had taken on an elevated role, injured his foot on Oct. 28 and is not supposed to be back until December. Drouin just suffered another injury, and he’s expected to be week to week.
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With so many absences, young players like Ivan Ivan, Nikolai Kovalenko, and Calum Ritchie have all been shuffled around the lineup to see if they could develop chemistry and produce offence to help out top players Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. Despite the setbacks, the Avalanche have had no problem scoring goals. They rank ninth in goals per game, averaging 3.41, fourth in power-play percentage at 28.17, and 16th in shots per game at 29.5. A healthy Landeskog could further boost the offence; during the 2021-22 season, the line with MacKinnon and Rantanen was the best on the team in expected goals percentage and expected goals.
Landeskog Has a Difficult Decision Ahead
Injuries happen in the NHL, and some all-time greats have cut their careers short because of them. Landeskog’s career has been incredible, and he is a vital piece of what the organization’s been built around. However, it might be time for him to have a long conversation with his family and management about his future with the team.
Like everyone, I want to see Landeskog 100% healthy on the ice. The significant issue with this issue is that his contract of $7 million per season doesn’t expire until the end of the 2027-2028 season. That’s not a significant problem because he can be placed on LTIR, and the Avalanche now has room to play around with his cap. The problem is that the Avalanche have to budget their cap around his potential to return every season. The Avalanche would need the proper methods to ensure they are under the cap when he is activated, such as sending players down to the American Hockey League (AHL), waiving them, or trading them.
When there is no clue if he will return from LTIR, key contracts like Rantanen’s, Casey Mittelstadt’s, and Cale Makar’s will expire, and they are going to look for a significant increases in their next ones; ones the Avalanche will have to balance alongside signing enough players to fill their roster and stay competitive. Landeskog’s return will affect not only the team’s performance but also management’s ability to continue to build a championship roster with the space they have and keep all of their players who helped them get where they are today. If he continues to have setbacks and no clear-cut evidence of when he could return emerges, the team must set up a future with him out of the lineup. Difficult questions must be answered; some might not like what they hear.
The past two years must have been brutal for Landeskog, who could not help his team compete for another Stanley Cup when they had the team to do so. But at this point, with no clear timeline for his return, it might be time for him to seriously consider retirement.