DENVER (AP) — Colorado Avalanche forward Logan O’Connor will undergo hip surgery this week and miss the rest of the season, coach Jared Bednar said Sunday.
O'Connor has missed six games since the All-Star break all related to the injury. He had 13 goals and 12 assists in 57 games this season. Bednar said there's no timeline on O'Connor's return or if he will be ready for training camp next season.
“Just depends on what they go in and find and what they end up doing,” explained Bednar, whose team begins a four-game trip Tuesday in Calgary.
The Avalanche made a bevy of moves at the trade deadline in an effort to bolster their depth. They acquired defenseman Sean Walker from Philadelphia and center Casey Mittelstadt from Buffalo. Then, they added forward Brandon Duhaime from Minnesota and center Yakov Trenin from Nashville. They also got back Valeri Nichushkin, who missed about two months after receiving care through the player assistance program. He scored the OT winner against Minnesota on Friday.
Bednar said Sunday after practice that forward Zach Parise is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. The team also is currently dealing with a bout of sickness that's running through the locker room, which has affected Artturi Lehkonen, Ross Colton and Jack Johnson.
Bednar addressed the possibility of a return by captain Gabriel Landeskog this season, saying the team has a potential date in mind — sometime in the playoff range — and will firmly stick to that. Landeskog had cartilage replacement surgery on his right knee in May and is missing a second straight season. The Swedish standout hasn't played since the Stanley Cup clincher at Tampa Bay on June 26, 2022.
“He has a timeline that says, ’You’re not coming back before this date. Doesn’t matter how good you feel,'” Bednar explained. "We’re sticking to that. It’s his career. So we’re not going to play with that regardless of where we’re at in a playoff series. So that’s No. 1.
"He will not come back before that date, and then he’s got to get himself to the point, hopefully, that he can come back. We don’t have clarity on that.”
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Pat Graham, The Associated Press
