The Colorado Avalanche are getting hit hard with some bad news before a key playoff game against Winnipeg. Avalanche winger Jonathan Drouin is out for the Jets game Sunday, per Sports Net Canada. Drouin is dealing with a lower body injury, and is expected to miss the entire series with the Jets.
Avalanche's Jonathan Drouin injury status
The news is certainly disheartening to Avalanche fans. Drouin has been a key part of the Colorado offense this season. The forward has 56 points on the campaign, including 37 assists. The forward is fifth on the team in goals, as well as fifth in assists. It has been a career-high season in points for the forward, who also played for the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Montreal Canadiens in his NHL career.
Drouin has appeared in 79 of the team's games, in his first season with the Avalanche. He got hurt in a recent game against Edmonton, which is forcing him to miss the Jets series.
The Avalanche are entering the NHL playoffs with a red-hot scoring offense, the best in the NHL. The team has forced 302 goals, per NHL stats. The team is the only club in the NHL with at least 300 goals scored on the season. The Avalanche are also first in the entire league in goals forced per games played, at 3.68.
Drouin has been a steady part of the offense, helping to set up his teammates for shots on goal. Colorado has frequently paired the forward on the same line with Nathan MacKinnon, who has been the focal point of the club's offense. The Avalanche will need to find a new formula on the ice to push past Winnipeg and stay alive in this Stanley Cup race. It's not certain at the time of writing if Drouin could come back again during the postseason.
Colorado called up defenseman Brad Hunt, forward Chris Wagner and goaltender Arvid Holm on Saturday from the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League, per the Associated Press. The team is likely to use Wagner in some capacity to help on the line with Drouin out. Avalanche fans are certainly hoping the team can skate by Winnipeg and get their star forward back in the lineup again during this playoff season.
The winger has a a total of 96 goals in his career, along with more than 560 games played. Drouin was the third overall pick by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2013 NHL Draft. He has played in more games this year than almost any other season he has been in the league.
The Avalanche and the Jets take the ice on Sunday at 7:00 Eastern. Colorado finished the regular season with 107 points, good for third in the Western Conference's Central Division. The Jets closed the season in second place, with 110 points.
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