Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog appeared close to NHL action this week, marking his first time on the ice with the NHL club since Game 6 of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final.
The Avs veteran completed a two-game AHL conditioning stint and rejoined full practices in the lead-up to the series opener against Dallas.
Landeskog scored and assisted in his brief AHL return and took part in every Avalanche practice this week. However, when the team took the ice Saturday night, Landeskog was not among them.
Despite head coach Jared Bednar listing Landeskog as “an option” for Game 1, the 32-year-old remained a scratch.
“He’s close, he's getting close,” Bednar said. “Every day I feel like he’s getting a little quicker, a little bit more confident, and a little bit more sure of himself. He’ll be an option for us in this series.”
No Gabriel Landeskog for warmups
Lindgren, Manson, Johnson, Girard, Toews Makar are the D
— Meghan Angley (@megangley) April 20, 2025
Landeskog skated in morning practice and again afterward with projected extras, suggesting early in the day that his return would be pushed back.
With Landeskog missing Game 1, the expectation is for the Avalanche to wait and aim for Game 3 in Denver, when they will regain line-change control as the home team, to finally bring their captain back.
With the matchup advantage, Bednar would be able to deploy Landeskog in sheltered minutes against the Stars’ bottom-six, easing the captain into game speed after nearly three years off.
“Figure Landeskog won't play until game 3 when the matchup can be dictated and he can be a bit more shelter,” Jeremy Lambert noted. “Don’t love it, but understand it."
Without Landeskog in the lineup, Colorado cruised to a 5-1 win in Game 1, led by two goals from Nathan MacKinnon and a strong showing from Mackenzie Blackwood.
Besides MacKinnon, teammates Artturi Lehkonen, Devon Toews, and Charlie Coyle each added a goal for the Avs.
The Avalanche will face the Stars again in Dallas on Monday before returning to Ball Arena for Game 3 on Wednesday, when Landeskog could finally make his highly anticipated return.
This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.
