The Avalanche's already difficult road to the playoffs has become even more treacherous.
Coach Jared Bednar said after practice Saturday that goalie Semyon Varlamov will miss the rest of the regular season with a lower-body injury, and defenseman Erik Johnson will be out for a minimum of six weeks with a non-displaced fractured patella.
Varlamov, who has a history of groin injuries, was hurt with 6:25 remaining in the third period of Friday's game when Chicago's Tomas Jurco slid hard into him in the crease. Varlamov, who was working on a 30-save, 4-0 shutout, needed help off the ice.
Jonathan Bernier relieved and made three saves in an eventual 5-0 win. It was the first team shutout in Quebec/Colorado history.
"I was just talking to Bernier about it," Bednar said. "It feels like we haven't had both those guys together since Christmas. I know that's a bit of a stretch, but we certainly haven't been able to keep both healthy for long."
Johnson was hurt Wednesday in the Avalanche's 2-1 loss to Philadelphia in his sixth game after missing 13 games with a shoulder injury. He has 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 62 games while averaging a team high 25:26 per game.
I asked Bednar if Varlamov has another groin injury. He missed the second half of last season to undergo surgery on each hip/groin in an attempt to put an end to this problem.
"Well, he's got a couple different things going on from that collision," Bednar said. "He's going to get re-evaluated next week some time."
Varlamov, who missed 10 games in January with a lower-body injury, has a 24-16-6 record with two shutouts, a 2.68 goals-against average and .920 save percentage.
Bernier went on to win nine games in a row -- Varlamov began the Avalanche's 10-game winning streak Dec. 29 -- and will be called upon again to backstop them into the playoffs with Andrew Hammond as backup.
Bernier has an 18-11-2 record with two shutouts, a 2.82 goals-against average and .913 save percentage.
The Avalanche open a three-game road trip Sunday in Anaheim. They play Los Angeles on Monday and San Jose on Thursday before meeting St. Louis next Saturday in the regular-season finale at the Pepsi Center.
The Avalanche and St. Louis have 92 points, but the Blues have the second wild card because they've played one fewer game. They play in Arizona on Saturday night.
"Only one goalie can play," Bednar said. "We feel confident in both those guys. So Berns is going to get the net. He stepped up and elevated his game and won us a bunch of hockey games when Varly was out before,
Bernier has had his share of injuries this season. He missed eight games with a concussion, five more with another concussion, and recently sat out three games with an infected cut on his hand.
Even Hammond, who made 31 saves against the Flyers in his only NHL game this year, was sidelined for nearly a month after sustaining a concussion when he was hit in the head with a stick while sitting on the bench as a backup.
"It just seems like this year there's been a lot of goalies getting hurt," Bernier said. "I'm not sure what's the reason, but we've been through a lot of adversity. We know how to handle it. To be in the spot that we're in right now, we're the youngest group in the NHL, it's huge.
"It seems like we've been in a playoff push for the last two months and everyone has to step up their game. It's really good for the experience for everyone. Our young guys have been proving that they can step up in big games. We have four games left and we have to put ourselves in a good position to get in the playoffs."