Makar has been out since March 30th with an upper-body injury but returned to Colorado's practice in a regular jersey on Friday. The two time Norris winning defensemen return is a welcome sign after Colorado locked up the Presidents Trophy on Thursday. Makar is expected to be full healthy for the playoffs and currently sits at 20-goals and 75 points in 73 games played this season.
With Nazem Kadri battling an upper-body injury, Kiviranta will draw into the lineup as his replacement. The 30-year-old Kiviranta had a career-high 16 goals in 79 games last season, but has been limited to only three goals and six assists through 46 games this season.
Kadri was limited to only 6:09 time-on-ice before exiting Tuesday's 3-1 win over the St. Louis Blues due to an upper-body injury. The severity of Kadri's injury is unclear, but with the playoffs fast approaching, Colorado has erred on the side of caution with several minor injuries over the past weeks. The 35-year-old Kadri has nine points (4G / 5A) in 16 game with Colorado since being acquired at the trade deadline.
With only five games left in Colorado's regular season, the team will likely be inclined to turn to Scott Wedgewood as their starting goalie in the playoffs unless Blackwood can quickly turn things around. The 29-year-old Blackwood has lost three straight outings, allowing 12 goals on 68 combined shots (.824 SV%). Since the beginning of March, he has had a sub- .900 SV% in seven of 11 appearances (4-4-0). That said, Colorado enters Thursday's contest as significant -312 home favourites against a Calgary Flames team they defeated 9-2 last week.
Makar has not played in over a week due to an upper-body injury, and with the postseason just over a week away, the team remains cautious in returning him to the lineup. That said, he was back at practice in a limited capacity on Thursday and is expected to play before the end of the regular season.
Kadri was limited to only 6:09 time-on-ice before exiting Tuesday's 3-1 win over the St. Louis Blues due to an upper-body injury. The severity of Kadri's injury is unclear, but with the playoffs fast approaching, Colorado has erred on the side of caution with several minor injuries over the past weeks. The 35-year-old Kadri has nine points (4G / 5A) in 16 game with Colorado since being acquired at the trade deadline.
With Valeri Nichushkin (upper body) returning from a one-game absence, Kiviranta will exit the lineup as a healthy scratch. The 30-year-old Kiviranta had a career-high 16 goals in 79 games last season, but has been limited to only three goals and six assists through 46 games this season.
Nichushkin was a late scratch on Sunday, missing the game due to an upper-body injury, but he will re-enter the lineup on Tuesday against the St. Louis Blues. The 31-year-old Nichushkin is producing at his lowest offensive output in five seasons, but has been more productive lately, with seven points (1G / 6A) in his last eight games. He has 45 points (15G / 30A) in 66 games this season. Joel Kiviranta will be a healthy scratch to accommodate Nichushkin's return.
Roy has been effective in a bottom-six role since being acquired by Colorado, and will re-enter the lineup after being sidelined for two weeks due to an upper-body injury. The 28-year-old had five goals in 59 games with Toronto, but already scored three in nine games with Colorado. Zakhar Bardakov will be a healthy scratch to accommodate Roy's return.
With Nicolas Roy returning from an upper-body injury, Bardakov will head to the press box as a healthy scratch. The 25-year-old Bardakov has only played one game in the past two weeks. He has 10 points (1G / 9A) in 57 games this season.
It's unclear who the league-leading Avalanche will turn to during the postseason, but lately, they have received more reliable play from Wedgewood, who will return to the crease on Tuesday against the St. Louis Blues. The 33-year-old Wedgewood was terrific in his previous outing, recording his third shutout of the season with a 17-save performance in a 2-0 win over his former team, the Dallas Stars. In his last five appearances (3-1-1), Wedgewood has a dazzling 1.35 GAA and .941 SV%. The Avalanche enter Tuesday's contest as -145 road favourites against a desperate St. Louis Blues team that is 2-0-1 in its last three games.
Roy has been effective in a bottom-six role since being acquired by Colorado, but has been sidelined for a week and will miss at least two more games. The 28-year-old had five goals in 59 games with Toronto, but already scored three in nine games with Colorado.
Makar recorded three assists in Monday's 9-2 one-sided win over the Calgary Flames, but exited the game during the second intermission due to an upper-body injury. He was sidelined for the subsequent game and will miss at least Colorado's next two games this weekend before his next chance to return on Tuesday.
Blackwood is coming off a 4-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, allowing three goals on 20 shots (.850 SV%), and will look to rebound on Wednesday against the Vancouver Canucks. The 29-year-old Blackwood has been protected defensively lately, facing fewer than 25 shots in 10 consecutive appearances (5-3-0), which has translated to a pedestrian 2.77 GAA and .868 SV%. Colorado enters Wednesday's contest as an enormous -450 home favourite against a Vancouver team that has been outscored 29-11 during a six-game losing streak (0-6-0).
Makar recorded three assists in Monday's 9-2 one-sided win over the Calgary Flames, but exited the game during the second intermission due to an upper-body injury. TSN's Pierre Lebrun reported on Tuesday that Makar will likely miss multiple games in order to be at full health for the playoffs, suggesting the Avalanche don't anticipate it being a long-term injury, but he remains without a definitive timeline for his return.
With Cale Makar (upper body) expected to miss a few games, Blankenburg will return to Colorado's lineup for the first time in over two weeks. The 27-year-old Blankenburg is averaging 9:08 time-on-ice and has zero points through three games with the Avalanche.
