Gabriel Landeskog to Play 1st NHL Game in 3 Years for Avalanche vs. Stars After Injury

Gabriel Landeskog is back.

The Colorado Avalanche captain hasn't played since the 2021-22 season due to issues with his right knee, but he'll return to the ice on Wednesday night in his team's Game 3 matchup in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Dallas Stars.

The series is tied at one game apiece.

"I'm thrilled. I think that's so much bigger than than hockey in this series," former Avalance center and current Stars star Matt Duchene told reporters about the possibility of Landeskog returning. "He was up at my cottage right after he had the surgery, showing me the pictures of before and after, all that stuff. And obviously as a guy, we have a good friendship. Our families are good friends, and we've been rooting for him to come back. Obviously, it makes our job harder having a guy like that out there, but on the friends side, the human side and the fellow athlete side, I think everyone's happy to see the progress he’s made."

It remains to be seen how effective Landeskog will be upon his return, given his lengthy layoff, but if the Avalanche get back the player who has compiled nine seasons with 20 or more goals, two seasons with 30 or more goals and three seasons with 60 or more points, they'll be getting a huge boost.

He was a huge factor for the team that won the Stanley Cup in the 2021-22 campaign, posting 11 goals and 11 assists that postseason, and the Avs won just one playoff series in two seasons without him.

Nobody is expecting Landeskog to return in top form. But having him back should provide the Avalanche with a boost nonetheless.

"Adding him back into our locker room, he's almost an extension of the coaching staff, but he's still one of the guys and the guy that everyone looks up to," head coach Jared Bednar told reporters Wednesday. "You can't get enough of that this time of the year."