Banged Up Avs Close to Returning

The Colorado Avalanche is on the verge of getting several healthy bodies back in the lineup.
Forward J.T. Compher and defensemen Bowen Byram and Cale Makar were all full participants at today's morning skate at Ball Arena, and while they are nearing a return, none of them are expected to suit up for tonight's game against the Anaheim Ducks.
Head coach Jared Bednar said that Byram and Compher are "really close" and will be medically cleared for the team's outing on Thursday versus the Minnesota Wild. Makar might be available for the Avs' next contest as well, but an exact timetable for the reigning Calder Trophy winner's return is a little more gray.

"Makar is making progress. You see him out there now, he's in a black [regular practice jersey], not a red [non-contact jersey]," Bednar said. "He's getting close too, but I don't necessarily have a firm timeline on his return."
All three players took part in most of the drills during the pregame practice, with each taking reps on the penalty-kill units during special-teams work.
"The more guys on the ice is always helpful for the guys that are going through the practice, and to see them in the regular jerseys is a nice sign," said Devon Toews on the imminent return of a few of his teammates. "You know, they've been working hard with our training staff and on the ice as well to get back for us, and hopefully we can get a couple of them back soon."
Compher's last game was against the Ducks on March 5, as he's been out for the past five outings with an upper-body injury.
Byram and Makar have been away from the action for more than two weeks with their own upper-body ailments, as both young rear guards last played in the back-to-back series at the Arizona Coyotes at the end of last month. Makar last suited up on Feb. 26 and has been out for the past nine games, while Byram has missed eight in a row after last skating on Feb. 27 in Arizona.
Earlier in the day, the Avalanche reassigned Dennis Gilbert to the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League, signally that the defensive prospect is healthy. Gilbert had been out since suffering an upper-body injury on Feb. 16 that required surgery.
The Avs have lost 120 man games this year due to injury and illness, with Conor Timmins (upper body), Erik Johnson (upper body) and Pavel Francouz (upper body) also currently out of the lineup. Johnson and Francouz are considered out long term.

GRUBAUER, MISKA AND TONIGHT'S LINEUP

Goaltender Hunter Miska will guard Colorado's net this evening, making his fifth start of the season and his first since March 6 against Anaheim.
Philipp Grubauer, who was named on Monday the NHL First Star from last week, will be the backup after playing four games in a row. Grubauer did not take part in the morning skate, but the reason was to try and squeeze in as much rest as possible before playing again on Thursday versus Minnesota.
"He's OK. I'm just trying to get him as much rest as we possibly can in between his stint of games," Bednar said of Grubauer. "Miska in net tonight, Grubi will backup. He's been playing a lot of hockey, he doesn't need to go on the ice for morning skate."
Bednar said he isn't making any other changes to his lineup for a squad that has won three games in a row, including 4-1 against the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday afternoon.
View: Avalanche Projected Lineup vs. Ducks

NOTEWORTHY

The Avalanche is on a three-game winning streak, matching its season high (Jan. 26-30) and is 7-2-1 in its last 10 contests. The Avs are 2-1-1 this season versus the Ducks.
It is the fifth of eight meetings this season between Colorado and Anaheim, with three of the previous matchups being decided in overtime. The Avs have gone 2-1 in the outings versus the Ducks that needed extra time, which included both matchups earlier in the homestand on March 5-6.
Tonight's game was originally scheduled for March 31 in Denver but was moved up due to rescheduing of Colorado's postponed contests from last month. The team will now play the Coyotes on March 31.
The Avs lead the league in shot differential (plus-237), outshooting their opponents by an average of 9.12 shots per night. Colorado has fired 40 or more shots in three straight games, one shy of tying the franchise record of four from last season, Dec. 27, 2019 to Jan. 2, 2020.

ONE TIMERS

Right wing Joonas Donskoi on the team's recent offensive success:
"I think we've been really good the last three, four games, especially defensively. I think we are not spending a lot of time in our own end, that way we can spend as much time as possible in the offensive zone. We have some guys that can hang onto pucks and create scoring chances, so I think we've been doing a very good job with that. One thing I think we could be better at is scoring goals."
Defenseman Devon Toews on facing the Ducks for the second time on this homestand:
"They defend hard. They have good goaltending and then they're opportunistic. You know, they make plays in the O-zone and we got to be stringent. We got to be really good in our own zone. If we can carry the success over from the L.A. series offensively, I think we got a good shot."
Head coach Jared Bednar on the club's high shot totals recently:
"It think it's been good. It's not spectacular, but I think it's been good. I touched on it before last game that I'm looking at the different types of chances we're creating and they're coming in different ways. I think we're getting chances from all four lines right now and our defense, so they're jumping up and helping us in a few different areas. I think we can still do a better job of finishing off some of our chances, but we got rewarded last game for going to the net. So we're starting to chip some in, and I think we're building in the right direction."