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Varlamov (groin) out until after ASG; Pickard, Martin will get net

January 18, 2017, 5:07 PM ET [25 Comments]
Rick Sadowski
Colorado Avalanche Blogger •Avalanche Insider • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Another groin injury will keep Avalanche goalie Semyon Varlamov out of commission for at least the next two weeks, until after the Jan. 26-30 NHL All-Star break. They play four games before then.

Varlamov, who has been plagued with this problem for much of his NHL career, will be shut down in an attempt to determine if there is a way to find permanent relief.

Calvin Pickard will start Thursday in Anaheim when the Avalanche open a two-game road trip that concludes Saturday in San Jose.

Spencer Martin, an AHL All-Star this season, was recalled from San Antonio to dress as the backup against the Ducks, but he'll eventually make his NHL debut during Varlamov's absence, coach Jared Bednar said after practice Wednesday.

Martin and Jeremy Smith each dressed as Pickard's backup for five games this year.

"I'm concerned," Bednar said, referring to Varlamov's health. "He's going to see the docs and he's going to talk with the docs and our trainer. We're going to shut him down until after the All-Star break. We're going to look at other treatment options to see what we need to do to try to get him healthy.

"This is no longer a day-to-day thing; it's happened too much. It's obviously affecting his ability to get into a rhythm and play well for us. Staying healthy, I'm sure, has a large part to do with that. So he's going to miss some time here."

Asked if Martin, 21, would get a chance to start at some point, Bednar said: "I would think so, yes."

Martin, 21, was Colorado's third-round pick (No. 63) in the 2013 NHL draft. A second-year pro, he has a 15-9-0 record with the Rampage, with one shutout, a 2.62 goals-against average and .915 save percentage.

This is the third time this season that Varlamov will be out because of a groin injury. He missed three games from Dec. 14 - 18 and six games from Dec. 23 - Jan. 4. He missed one game in November with a wrist injury.

Varlamov allowed five goals on 26 shots Tuesday in the Avalanche's 6-4 loss to Chicago and wasn't on the ice Wednesday. He's lost five consecutive starts while allowing 18 goals.

He has a 6-17-0 record for the last-place Avalanche with one shutout, a 3.38 goals-against average and .898 save percentage -- by far the worst numbers of his nine-season NHL career.

Varlamov missed five games last season because of groin injuries and 15 games in 2014-15. He played in a career-high 63 games in 2013-14 when he was a Vezina Trophy finalist with 41 wins, a 2.41 goals-against average and .927 save percentage while leading the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup playoffs.

He missed three games in 2012-13 with hip injuries and 12 games because of groin issues while with Washington in 2010-11.

Pickard, who played seven consecutive games during Varlamov's previous injury, is 7-11-1 this season with one shutout, a 3.06 goals-against average and .902 save percentage.

While knocking on his wooden locker seat Wednesday, Pickard said he hasn't experienced groin injury issues, certainly none comparable to Varlamov's.

"I've been pretty lucky with that kind of thing, I guess it's my body type," he said. "I've been lucky in terms of injuries, long-term injuries, so let's keep it going that way. There's a lot of sudden movements (as a goalie) and you have a lot of (equipment) on your body and weird bounces that put you in different situations, so it's definitely common. You see a lot of it around the league."



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