Goalie Semyon Varlamov is "day to day" with a lower-body injury, Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said Wednesday, and is "doubtful" to return until after the team's bye week, which starts after Saturday's game against Minnesota.
Jonathan Bernier will start Thursday against Columbus. Andrew Hammond, who was acquired from Ottawa on Nov. 5 in the Matt Duchene trade, will be recalled from Belleville of the AHL (where he's been on loan) and dress as the backup.
"It's muscular and he's feeling good this morning, which is a good sign," Bednar said of Varlamov's injury. "He's in the same boat as (J.T.) Compher and (Sven) Andrighetto; they're all day-to-day and I would say doubtful to return before the break."
Andrighetto has a lower-body injury, Compher an upper-body injury, and Tyson Barrie will miss 4-6 weeks to recover from surgery for a fractured hand.
"We'll see how the next couple days go," Bednar said. "It's starting to look like the bye week is coming at a good time for us. Now we have a couple injuries that are starting to pile up here. Two more big games before the break and then we'll get some time off."
It's a concern any time a player is injured, and this is especially true in Varlamov's case. He's had chronic groin injuries throughout his career and missed the final 40 games last season to recover from surgery on each of his hips in an attempt to alleviate the problem.
The Avalanche had a 2-0 lead against Winnipeg on Tuesday with 5:45 remaining in the second period when Varlamov, who made 21 saves, skated off the ice in apparent pain.
Bernier relieved, stopped 22 of 24 shots, and Erik Johnson scored with 9.9 seconds to go in overtime for a 3-2 win. "I think (it was) just a movement that he had on a shot," Bednar said of Varlamov. "He felt some soreness. He knows his body, just like the rest of our players do. It's something we paid attention to, especially early in the season, but he's been healthy and played well.
"It's the same with all our guys, if there's something going on we want to know about it."
Tuesday's start was Varlamov's eighth in a 10-game stretch. After allowing four goals in a 5-2 loss at Washington on Dec. 12, he limited teams to 13 goals in parts of seven games.
Varlamov has a 13-9-2 record with one shutout, a 2.87 goals-against average and .912 save percentage.
Bernier, who signed as a free agent July 1, has a 7-7-1 record with one shutout, a 3.15 goals-against average and .898 save percentage.
Bernier made 27 saves in his most recent start, a 6-1 win against the New York Islanders on New Year's Eve. He started four consecutive games Nov. 19-25 when Varlamov was ill and went 2-1-1, allowing eight goals. "You have time to prepare, so it's a lot easier (than coming in cold)," Bernier said Wednesday. "Like I said last night, it's not an easy situation, but at the same time that's my job and I'm happy we got the win. It was a big game for us and now we turn the page and get ready for tomorrow.
"I'm excited to get the chance to play tomorrow and then we'll go from there. When you start playing more it makes it a lot easier, you know what to expect and you get into a rhythm and your confidence goes up."
Bernier, 29, played in 39 games for Anaheim last season and went 21-7-4 with two shutouts, a 2.50 goals-against average and .915 save percentage. He played in a career-high 58 games with Toronto in 2014-15, going 21-28-7 with a 2.87 goals-against average and .912 save percentage.
"That's always what I've wanted to do, play as many games as possible," he said. "Some years it didn't really work out, but that's why I'm here, to fill the holes."