While Rantanen didn't participate in any of the Avs' pre-season activities, he has continued his training back in Europe. He had been practicing with SC Bern of the Swiss pro league and recently returned to his native Finland.
When Rantanen arrives in Denver isn't known just yet, but it is expected that he'll play on Thursday when Colorado opens the regular season at home against the Calgary Flames should his immigration get settled.
"We will brush him up with a couple meetings if he gets in on time. I know he has been skating, working hard. He always comes to camp in really good shape, and I am sure that will be no different this year," said Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar following the preseason game at the Stars. "Our guys will be excited to have him back--he is a huge piece to our team."
Rantanen is coming off a career season in which he posted personal bests of 31 goals, 56 assists and 87 points. He surpassed the 30-goal mark for the first time in his career and joined Chris Drury as the only players in Avs history (since 1995) to score 20-plus goals in each of his first three NHL seasons.
The Nousiainen, Finland, native was also named to the NHL All-Star Game last season, joining MacKinnon and Landeskog. The three players combined for 106 goals and 261 points during the year, with the trio spending much of last season on the same line together.
The three Avalanche skaters finished 1-2-3 in scoring in 2018-19, with Rantanen coming in second behind MacKinnon's 99 points.
"Mikko has established himself as one of the premier young wingers in the NHL and is a big part of our core group," said Avalanche executive vice president/general manager Joe Sakic. "We look forward to having him back with the team as we get ready to start the season."