Colorado Avalanche tries to move on after six-month suspension of Valeri Nichushkin

DENVER (AP) — The nameplate above Valeri Nichushkin’s locker has already been removed at the Colorado Avalanche training facility.

This could be just for the moment – ​​or possibly forever.

For the second year in a row, the Avalanche are on the verge of being eliminated from the playoffs because Nichushkin, one of their top players, is unavailable due to off-ice circumstances.

This could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back for the Avs when it comes to the talented 29-year-old Russian striker.

Nichushkin was suspended without pay for a minimum of six months and placed in Level 3 of the league’s player assistance program on Monday night. The National Hockey League and National Hockey League Players’ Association announced the news about an hour before the start of the Avalanche’s 5-1 loss to the Dallas Stars that dropped them 3-1 in the second round.

Coach Jared Bednar refused to attribute the loss to the absence of the team’s leading playoff scorer. After all, Colorado was without Nichushkin earlier in the season while he was undergoing treatment; his return had given Colorado a boost, but Level 3 means he violated the terms of the program, which offers help for everything from mental health issues to substance abuse.

Nichushkin will miss at least the remainder of the postseason and the first month of next season.

His teammates learned of his suspension several times throughout the day. They were out of rhythm early in Game 4, outscoring the others by 16 shots in the first period and never really getting going. They need a win in Dallas on Wednesday to avoid elimination in the best-of-seven series.

“Obviously it’s tough on him and his family,” Colorado star Nathan MacKinnon said Tuesday after an optional workout, adding he received the Nichushkin news from president Joe Sakic and general manager Chris MacFarland. “That’s all I’m going to say about it.”

Details of Nichushkin’s problems were not disclosed. In a first-round playoff series last spring against Seattle, Nichushkin abruptly left the team and missed the final five games of the postseason as the Avalanche lost the series 4-3.

This postseason, Nichushkin was a valuable contributor, leading his team with nine playoff goals. He is under contract through the 2029-30 season after signing an eight-year, $49 million deal with the Avalanche in 2022.

It’s not clear when – or if – Nichushkin will return. If he does return, how will he regain the trust of his teammates after they’ve already given him another chance?

“Val is obviously struggling with something,” Bednar said. “Yeah, it’s really bummer for our team. We have to turn things around.”

“I want him to be happy and I want him to be happy with his life whether he’s with our team or not,” Bednar added. “We hope he can find some peace and get some help.”

The team is currently in its prime for title-winning play, with a core team that includes 28-year-old MacKinnon, 25-year-old Cale Makar and 27-year-old Mikko Rantanen. They are also hoping for the return of Gabriel Landeskog, their 31-year-old captain, who underwent cartilage replacement surgery on his right knee last May and is out for the second straight season.

For Colorado, the most pressing concern is finding a way to regroup and avoid another early exit.

“This is a tough business, this is our job and we give it everything we have,” forward Andrew Cogliano said. “I think we focus on the guys in the room. We have a lot of good guys here trying to make a difference and at the end of the day, that’s what it is for us.”

Shortly before Game 4, the Avalanche also learned that they would be without their top defenseman Devon Toews due to illness – another blow for a team that won the Stanley Cup in 2022.

“Nobody feels sorry for us,” said Cogliano.

Nichushkin was unavailable for nearly two months at the start of this season, from January 13 to March 7, as he required treatment as part of the program for issues that have not yet been disclosed.

Last spring, during the playoffs, Nichushkin was absent after officials responded to a crisis call from a Seattle hotel before Game 3. When officials arrived, a 28-year-old woman was in an ambulance, and paramedics were instructed to speak with an Avalanche team doctor for further details.

The report, obtained by the Associated Press at the time from Seattle police, said the Avalanche’s doctor told officials that team personnel found the woman while checking on Nichushkin. The doctor told officials that the woman appeared to be very drunk and had asked for emergency medical services.

Colorado’s season ended with a 2-1 home loss to the Kraken in game 7.

It could very well end in Dallas on Wednesday.

“Obviously we want Val on the team and we want (Toews) on the team,” MacKinnon said. “But I still think we’re good enough to win it all.”

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AP hockey writer Stephen Whyno contributed to this report.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Pat Graham, Associated Press