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Back to work, eager for stretch run

January 30, 2020, 7:06 PM ET [6 Comments]
Rick Sadowski
Colorado Avalanche Blogger •Avalanche Insider • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Avalanche returned to practice Thursday, 10 days after their third consecutive win, a 6-3 decision against Detroit to complete a 3-0-2 homestand.

Nathan MacKinnon was given an extra day off after taking part in NHL All-Star Weekend. Coach Jared Bednar said he’s fine and will practice Friday morning before the Avalanche head to Philadelphia to begin a five-game road trip.

Joonas Donskoi, who missed the entire homestand while in concussion protocol, will play Saturday against the Flyers. He had a full contact practice Jan. 19 but was held out of the Red Wings game so he’d have the All-Star break and bye week to fully recover.

Donskoi, who was injured Jan. 7 on a hit by New York Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren, skated with Matt Nieto and Tyson Jost on Thursday.

“I really liked the way we finished the homestand,” Bednar said. “I liked the line combinations we had and now he’s pushing a month of not playing, so I’ll probably start him there and then everything’s subject to change.”

Bednar said he “loved our practice” after the long layoff.

“Great energy, physical, competitive, lots of talk and chatter on the ice,” he said. “It tells me the guys are mentally rested and they’re ready to go. Physically rested, I know we are for sure.”

The Avalanche weren’t permitted to have an official practice until Thursday, but many players skated together during the break.

“The guys should be excited for the stretch run and should be ready to go,” Bednar said.

The Avalanche are in second place in the Central Division with a 28-15-6 record and 62 points. They trail St. Louis by eight points and have two games in hand. There are 33 games remaining in the regular season.

“(The break) gives the body time to heal up and for the injured guys to get some rest,” said goalie Philipp Grubauer, who spent some time in Mexico. “It’s also nice to get away from hockey mentally a little bit. It was a nice break before we get going. It’s going to be really important for us moving forward, and I think the break came at the right time.”

Captain Gabriel Landeskog said it was good to be back with teammates he hadn’t seen in a while.

“You miss these guys,” he said. “There are some days you want to get away from them; you don’t want to hear their voices and things like that, but there’s also a lot of days where you miss the camaraderie and being out there and practicing together. It was fun being back together.”



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