Rantanen on injured list with MacKinnon
The Avalanche played without two-thirds of its top line Tuesday night against the San Jose Sharks at the Pepsi Center.
Second-year winger Mikko Rantanen, the Avs’ second-leading scorer, missed his first game of the season with a lower-body injury — which he presumably suffered in Saturday’s 3-0 loss at Winnipeg. Top-line center Nathan MacKinnon, who is the NHL’s third-leading scorer, missed his third consecutive game with a shoulder injury.
MacKinnon and Rantanen, linemates the entire season, have combined for 41 goals — 25 percent of the team’s total — and 111 points. Gabe Landeskog, the left winger on that line, played with rookie center Alex Kerfoot and veteran Colin Wilson against the Sharks.
“We got enough depth on this team to fill those shoes — even though, obviously, Mikko and Nate have had great seasons so far,” Landeskog said. “It’s a matter of everybody stepping up.”
The Sharks played without future Hall of Fame center Joe Thornton, who missed his sixth consecutive game with a knee injury.
“It’s something every team goes through. Every team in the league is going through injuries to some high-profile guys,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said after the morning skate. “It is what it is. You’ve got to find a way to win without them. We’re in a spot here, we’re in a race to try to stay in the playoffs, to get to the playoffs, and the division is so tight, the conference is so tight, every point matters.
“No one is going to feel sorry for ourselves coming into this thing. We got to find other guys to step up. We’ve done it time and time again through injuries this year. Now we need other guys to fill in some spots and produce some goals to win.”
Single game at home.
Landeskog was asked if he needed GPS to find the Pepsi Center on Tuesday morning, given that the Avs haven’t played in the building since Jan. 20. He said he had no problem finding the arena but nearly forgot his parking lot pass code.
Colorado has played its last six games on the road, including three-game trips before and after the NHL all-star break. The Avs are in a stretch that has them playing 13-of-16 games on the road, and begin another three-game trip Thursday at St. Louis.
“It’s good to be back. I’m excited. Hopefully, Avs fans are excited too,” Landeskog said. “It’s important to establish our game here at home again before we head back on the road.”
Footnote.
The Avs’ only healthy scratch was rookie defenseman Andrei Mironov. In addition to MacKinnon and Rantanen, Colorado’s injured players include forward Sven Andrighetto (leg) and defenseman Mark Barberio (lower body). Rookie forward Vladislav Kamenev (arm) remains on the long-term injured reserve.