Defenseman Erik Johnson is day-to-day with an upper-body injury and he wasn’t on the ice Monday, but right wing Mikko Rantanen took part in the full practice while wearing a non-contact jersey and has a good chance of playing this weekend, with a slight chance he could return as early as Wednesday against Edmonton at the Pepsi Center.

Coach Jared Bednar at first said Rantanen was “doubtful” for the Oilers game and sounded more optimistic about his returning from a lower-body injury in the home-and-home series with Chicago that begins Friday.

“I think there’s a chance (for Wednesday), but that’s going to be a conversation with Mikko and I,” Bednar said of Rantanen, who has missed 14 games. “I want him to feel comfortable when he’s coming in. He’s a player coming back from the injury and if he feels like a couple extra practices -- obviously I want him in, but I want to put him in in a place to succeed where he’s feeling comfortable. I don’t want him wading into the game where he’s unsure.

“But if he comes to me and says, ‘Listen, I want to play, I’m ready to go,’ even if his conditioning might not be where it needs to be because of the limitations that have been on him, Mikko at 14, 15 minutes a night is still good Mikko. But that will be a decision made mostly by him. I’ll support him either way.

“Good practice today, really good. Wore a red jersey, but he got dumped a couple times, took some hits -- some accidental, some looked like on purpose – and he feels good after the practice. That’s his first team practice -- non-contact, partial contact.”

Bednar said if Johnson practices Tuesday there’s a chance he could play Wednesday. He said Johnson was sore after getting boarded by Toronto’s Alexander Kerfoot on Saturday and is “questionable” for the game against the Oilers.

Kerfoot, the former Avalanche forward, was given a two-game suspension Monday by the NHL Player Safety Department.

The Avalanche recalled defenseman Calle Rosen from the Colorado Eagles and reassigned forward A.J. Greer to the AHL team. Rosen practiced Monday and might play Wednesday.

Toronto’s Alexander Kerfoot has been suspended for two games for Boarding Colorado’s Erik Johnson. https://t.co/Q1i23tNvVr

— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) November 25, 2019

“I did not like the hit at all,” Bednar said of Kerfoot, who was assessed a minor penalty. “It’s (seeing Johnson’s back) the whole way, and when he gives him a shot in the mid- to upper-back, which knocks him off balance, and he’s a real dangerous distance from the boards.

“I think we’re lucky that he’s not real hurt for that one because he goes in hard and he goes in awkward. You’re not expecting that as a player, so I think the suspension and hearing is something that needed to happen.”

As for other injuries, Bednar said captain Gabriel Landeskog (lower-body injury) was being reevaluated Monday, forward Matt Calvert (head) has shown some improvement and forward Colin Wilson (lower body) is out indefinitely. None of the three has resumed skating.

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Rosen, who was acquired in the big July 1 trade with Toronto, had eight points (one goal, seven assists) in 13 games with the Eagles.

“I think he had a little bit of a slow start when he got down there, but our guys have seen him multiple times and his game’s really picked up as of late,” Bednar said. “Again, one of our issues has been our puck moving and getting back from pucks and breaking out pucks, and that’s a strength of his.

“I’ll be honest, as a D-corps and as a team we haven’t done a good enough job in the month of November, so we are going to explore options and looking at guys to see if we’ve got a better fit.”

Rosen, 25, is from Vaxjo, Sweden. He spent most of the past two seasons with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL. He had 46 points (seven goals, 39 assists) in 54 games with them last season. He had a goal and an assist in eight games with the Maple Leafs, four games in each of the past two seasons.

“I was playing a lot (with the Eagles), it’s fun to get the games in,” Rosen said. “I’ve had some ups and downs, but I’m excited to be here now. I wanted to start the season here, but I went up there and played as many games as I could. Now I’m back here and hopefully I get a chance to play.”



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