Gabe Landeskog is ‘extension of the coaching staff’ during Colorado Avalanche playoff run

WINNIPEG, Manitoba — Gabe Landeskog buzzed around Avalanche morning skate wearing a gray hoodie before Game 2 against the Jets.

The captain remains unable to play with no clear timetable on his return. But Landeskog is still making his presence felt during the Avs first-round playoff series.

“I think he helps our team morale,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said Tuesday after morning skate at Canada Life Centre. "Landy’s just a great person, player, and sort of just an extension of the coaching staff. A guy that anyone on our team can go to and lean on with any issues. He has a really good understanding of our overall team concept … They see how hard he works on the ice and in the gym, and he’s hitting the ice here occasionally now and working on his rehab. So, I think everyone’s rooting for him.”

The only plausible scenario where Landeskog comes back in the playoffs is a deep run to the Stanley Cup Finals. Is that motivation for the Avalanche to survive and advance?

“That would be an ideal situation for us if we were able to continue to advance and he were able to get back. We don’t know that that’s the case. But we’ve got a lot of motivation as a team,” Bednar said. “We’ve got guys that have won that want to do it again, we’ve got guys that haven’t, and we’ve got guys like Zach Parise in our room that are coming out of retirement for a chance to win.”

Greetings from #Avs morning skate for GM2 in Winnipeg. Georgiev & Prosvetov are here (Annunen is not). Girard in a non-PP jersey. Landeskog in assistant coach mode. pic.twitter.com/O7wSMwJSBr

— Kyle Fredrickson (@kylefredrickson) April 23, 2024

Goalie update

Backup goalie Justus Annunen’s absence continues due to illness.

Alexandar Georgiev earned the start for Game 2. The Avalanche swapped his backup — Arvid Holm for Ivan Prosvetov — in corresponding moves with the Colorado Eagles (AHL). Prosvetov posted a .895 save percentage over 11 appearances in net over the NHL regular season.

“(Prosvetov) is a more experienced guy and he played well for us at times when he was up here,” Bednar said. “Since he’s gone down, he’s played really well for the Eagles.”

TV ratings

Game 1 between the Avalanche and Jets was ESPN2’s most viewed first-round NHL playoff game ever and the third-most viewed Game 1 of a first-round series ever on cable, according to ESPN public relations. Avs-Jets Game 1 averaged 1.1 million total viewers and peaked at 1.4 million.

Stanley Cup Playoffs: Sunday's First Round on ESPN and ESPN2 up 65% 🏒More: https://t.co/gpNt2StUAS pic.twitter.com/hYS2ZucWyj

— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) April 23, 2024

Quotable

Nathan MacKinnon, after morning skate Tuesday in Winnipeg, on the team’s resilience: “The best part about being in the sport we are is that we get to be resilient, and we get to compete. We have a bunch of guys in this room that love to compete, no matter the circumstances. No matter how this series plays out, we’re not going to quit. That’s definitely a sign of any winning team — resilience. When we won (the Stanley Cup), we had a ton of that, and I see a lot of the same traits in this team.”

#Avs Nathan MacKinnon before GM2 in Winnipeg: “No matter how this series plays out, we’re not going to quit.” pic.twitter.com/vCsv78b9zZ

— Kyle Fredrickson (@kylefredrickson) April 23, 2024