Avalanche health update
Colorado’s defenseman Cale Makar is back in the club’s latest power‑ranking notes, while forward Nazem Kadri was listed as questionable heading into playoff weekend. (nhl.com) Those availability tags came as part of a broader late‑season health snapshot teams are publishing before Game 1s. (nhl.com)
Colorado goes into playoff weekend with Cale Makar back in the lineup and Nazem Kadri still day to day. (nhl.com) The National Hockey League’s April 15 Super 16 notes said Makar returned after missing seven games with an upper-body injury, while Kadri was out with a finger injury but “should be back close to the start of the postseason.” (nhl.com) Makar’s injury dates to March 30, when he was hit in a 9-2 win against the Calgary Flames and did not play in the third period. Coach Jared Bednar said on April 1 that the injury was not expected to put the playoffs in jeopardy. (nhl.com) By April 15, Makar had already shown up on the scoresheet in his return, recording three assists against Calgary, according to NHL.com’s playoff-edition power rankings. (nhl.com) Kadri’s situation is shorter-term but still unsettled. NHL.com’s status reports on April 9 and April 10 said he injured a finger in a 3-1 win at St. Louis and then missed games against Calgary as Colorado tried to get him back before the postseason. (nhl.com 1) (nhl.com 2) Colorado’s urgency is tied to where these players fit. Makar is the club’s No. 1 defenseman and had 75 points in 73 games when he was shut down on April 1; Kadri, reacquired from the Calgary Flames on March 6, had nine points in 16 games after returning to Colorado. (nhl.com 1) (nhl.com 2) (nhl.com 3) The timing is tight. The Avalanche finished the regular season on April 16, and the National Hockey League said Colorado’s first-round Game 1 is scheduled for Sunday, April 19, against the Western Conference’s second wild card before the final matchup was locked in. (nhl.com) That opponent is now the Los Angeles Kings, according to the league’s first-round series page. Colorado enters that series after going 54-16-11 through 81 games in the April 15 power rankings and then closing the season with a 2-0 win over the Seattle Kraken on April 16. (nhl.com 1) (nhl.com 2) (nhl.com 3) The health snapshot is simple going into Game 1: Makar is back on the ice, Kadri is not fully cleared yet, and Colorado is trying to start the playoffs with as much of its core available as possible. (nhl.com)
