The wait for the real version of the Colorado Avalanche may be coming to an end.

Colorado’s top six forwards were all on the ice together Monday for the first time since May. Arturri Lehkonen will make his season debut Tuesday night against Seattle after offseason shoulder surgery.

Not only Valeri Nichushkin participate in team training for the first time since suspended for at least six months and placed in stage 3 of the NHL-AJLHL player assistance program, but the Avs believe they also know his return date: November 15 against Washington.

Add in Jonathan Drouin, who continues to practice in a non-contact redshirt, and the Avs might not be the most short-handed team in the league for much longer.

“Well, we’re getting closer, aren’t we?” » said Avalanche coach Jared Bednar. “We don’t know exactly when the other guys are going to come back, but every player we add just helps another line and probably pushes someone down the line until they play against the right level competition.”

The Avs also have three other forwards on the mend. Miles Wood could be back next week following an upper body injury. Ross Colton could return mid-to-late December after a broken foot. When the captain Gabe Landeskog could return remains a mystery.

But Lehkonen, Nichushkin and Drouin played integral roles in the club’s success at both ends of the ice last season and will instantly improve several aspects of Colorado’s current roster.

The Avs are still eighth in the NHL in expected goals percentage at 5-on-5 despite these three one-game combinations so far this season. One of the reasons Colorado is 25th in true field goal percentage is because goalkeeper difficultiesbut the Avs aren’t converting their scoring chances at the same rate either.

Although the power play has been excellent for much of the season, adding these three players could make it even better and more varied. Nichushkin was one of the two best net-front presences in the NHL last season, along with Edmonton’s Zach Hyman.

This makes Cale Makar’s shooting ability from the top of the zone more effective. Drouin is also good at creating space for Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen to pass the puck from one side of the ice to the other, which creates different ways to attack.

Lehkonen could provide an immediate boost in all three phases of the game, but he (and Nichushkin) might miss the most on the penalty kill. The Avs are currently 20th in PK, including two goals against Saturday night in Nashville.

“I think he’s so versatile (as a) player,” Rantanen said of Lehkonen. “Like he could play shorthanded and on the power play. He can do anything. So just a really solid all-around player. He doesn’t make mistakes. It’s so good to have him back.

Nichushkin has been skating and training alone in Denver, away from the team, for the past few weeks. He still has to go through the final reinstatement process and be cleared to play by the NHL and NHLPA, but Bednar believes Nichushkin will be ready to play on November 15.

Several key team leaders reiterated a line from last season: Avs will welcome Nichushkin back with open arms – during media day in September. General manager Chris MacFarland said in early October that what his players “want to know is that Val is healthy and that he understands the evil they enduredespecially in playoff time” after his availability issues during each of the last two playoff series.

Today, the reality of Nichushkin’s return is almost here.

“We obviously need him,” Rantanen said. “I don’t want to look back on the past, on what happened before. We need him in the lineup. He is an important part of the team.

The update on Landeskog wasn’t as promising. Bednar said the team captain has been away from the ice recently, but feels better in the gym and is “still going through his process.” The Avs previously said it would be a “12 to 16 month” recovery for Landeskog following surgery in May 2023, but it will be 18 months next week and he has not been on the ice with the team since the 2024 playoffs in May. .

Given other injury and availability concerns, Landeskog’s delayed return was put on the back burner. The Avs need healthy, efficient versions of Lehkonen, Nichushkin and Drouin to help launch a season that feels like an extended waiting game, although MacFarland said he doesn’t want the club to wait for the cavalry.

“It’s going to help our team and we just have to play together and not change the mindset,” Rantanen said. “I think there’s been some struggles offensively, maybe execution-wise…that’s going to come with this team. We’ve seen it in the past.

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