SUNRISE, Fla. — Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog was injured early in the second period of his team’s 2-1 loss to the Florida Panthers on Sunday night and needed to be helped off the ice.
Landeskog lost his footing, fell to the ice and crashed into the goalpost before coming to a stop in front of the end boards. He was down for more than a minute, being tended to by members of the Colorado medical staff and was unable to skate off under his own power. The Avalanche said Landeskog had an upper-body injury.
After the loss, Colorado coach Jared Bednar told reporters that Landeskog is “going to miss some time for sure.”
Landeskog helped the Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 2022, then sat out nearly three full years because of a chronically injured right knee — one that required several procedures before he could play again. He returned for five games in last season’s playoffs, ending more than 1,000 days of waiting between games.
It was his left knee that appeared to buckle on the play in which he was injured Sunday, moments before he crashed into the post.
Landeskog has appeared in all 41 of Colorado’s games this season, a key part of the team’s historic start. The Avalanche are 31-3-7 and has the second-most points through 41 games in NHL history.
He has seven goals and 15 assists this season and had been named to represent Sweden in next month’s Milan Cortina Olympics.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
