Lehkonen (neck) is no longer wearing a neck brace, Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now reports.
Lehkonen was seen around the team after Saturday's win over Calgary, but he isn't ready to begin workouts. "I'm sure as the days and weeks start coming by here, he'll get more into the working out and rehab stuff and do what he can," coach Jared Bednar said Saturday. Lehkonen is on long-term injured reserve and has been replaced by Valeri Nichushkin on the top line and by Tomas Tatar on the power play.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Dealing with neck injury
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Lehkonen's injury, which was previously just described as upper body, is a neck issue, coach Jared Bednar told Peter Baugh of The Athletic on Thursday.
There's no timetable for Lehkonen's return, but he's on the long-term injured reserve list and consequently won't return until Dec. 5 versus Anaheim at the earliest. He has three goals and eight points in 12 contests this season. With Lehkonen unavailable, Tomas Tatar has seen his playing time inch upward over the last two contests.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Shifts to LTIR
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Lehkonen (upper body) was moved to the long-term injured reserve Monday, per CapFriendly.
Lehkonen was already expected to miss multiple weeks, but this transaction will guarantee that he doesn't return until at least December. Jonathan Drouin and Tomas Tatar should see some extra playing time in Lehkonen's absence.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Moved to IR
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Lehkonen (upper body) was placed on injured reserve Sunday, per CapFriendly.
Lehkonen is expected to miss multiple weeks with his injury and his placement on injured reserve won't affect that timeline. The 28-year-old has three goals and eight points in 12 games this season. An update on his return date should be available in the coming weeks as he moves through the rehab process.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Will miss weeks
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Coach Jared Bednar said Saturday that Lehkonen (upper body) will be out for weeks, according to Marc Moser of Altitude Sports 950.
Lehkonen hit his head on the glass Thursday via a hit from Seattle's Jamie Oleksiak. The Avalanche will have a tough time replacing Lehkonen, who fit in quite well with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. Lehkonen has three goals and eight points in 12 games this season.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Taken to hospital
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Lehkonen was taken to a hospital after taking a heavy hit in the second period versus the Kraken on Thursday.
Lehkonen's head hit the glass after a collision with Jamie Oleksiak. The Avalanche's statement added that Lehkonen is responsive, alert and has full mobility, and his trip to the hospital is a precaution. There may not be another update on Lehkonen's status until Friday. The Avalanche play the Blues on Saturday.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Practices on first line
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Lehkonen skated on the top line with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen during Wednesday's practice, Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now reports.
It looks like head coach Jared Bednar will tweak the lines heading into Thursday's home game against the Kraken. Lehkonen has been a top-six contributor, including a spot on the top power-play unit, and has previous experience with MacKinnon and Rantanen. Lehkonen has seven points (three goals, four assists) overall, including four on the power play.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Scores in Wednesday's win
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Lehkonen scored a goal on three shots and went plus-2 in Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Blues.
Lehkonen snapped a three-game point drought with his tally in the third period. The winger has been a little streaky early in 2023-24 -- he'd earned six points during a three-game streak prior to his slump. Lehkonen is up to three goals, four helpers, 32 shots on net, eight hits and a plus-1 rating over nine contests.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Leads offense with four points
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Lehkonen scored a power-play goal on two shots, added three assists and logged two PIM in Saturday's 6-4 win over the Hurricanes.
Two of his assists also came with the man advantage. Lehkonen is firmly part of the Avalanche's top six, though head coach Jared Bednar has shown plenty of willingness to tinker with his lines during games. Through five contests, Lehkonen has two goals, four helpers, four power-play points, 22 shots on net and five hits.
Lehkonen posted a power-play assist and six shots on goal in Thursday's 4-0 win over the Blackhawks.
Lehkonen set up a Ryan Johansen tally in the first period. With time on the first power-play unit, Lehkonen has the highest upside of any of the Avalanche's middle-six forwards. He's up to two points, 20 shots on goal, four hits and a plus-1 rating through four contests this season.
Lehkonen scored a goal on three shots in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Kraken.
Lehkonen tied the game at 1-1 with his second-period tally. The goal was his first point in three games, but he's been driving offense with 14 shots on goal. The winger has added three hits and a plus-1 rating while skating in a top-six role with plenty of power-play time.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Joins Avalanche for practice
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Lehkonen (broken toe) took part in Thursday's practice, according to Brennan Vogt of The-Rink.com.
Lehkonen had 21 goals and 51 points in 64 contests with Colorado in 2022-23. He's expected to start the season skating in the top six and the first power-play unit.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Recovering from broken toe
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Lehkonen suffered a broken toe during Colorado's first-round playoff series against Seattle, Peter Baugh of The Athletic reports.
Lehkonen is expected to be ready for next season. In 64 games during the 2022-23 campaign, he produced 21 goals and a career-high 51 points.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Nets two goals vs. Seattle
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Lehkonen tallied two goals in a 4-1 victory over Seattle in Game 6 on Friday.
Lehkonen earned his third multi-point game of the 2023 playoffs, bringing him up to three goals and six points in six first-round contests. He found the back of the net late in the second period to put the Avalanche up 3-1 before capping the scoring with an empty-netter in the final seconds of the third. Lehkonen has been serving on Colorado's top line and first power-play unit, which is an arrangement that will likely continue in Game 7 on Sunday.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Dishes pair of helpers
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Lehkonen notched two assists and two shots on goal in Saturday's 6-4 win over the Kraken in Game 3.
Lehkonen has four points over his last two games after coming up empty in the playoff opener. He helped out on J.T. Compher's shorthanded goal in the first period and Mikko Rantanen's empty-netter in the third. Lehkonen continues to see top-line minutes and could keep that role with Valeri Nichushkin (personal) out for an unspecified length of time.
Lehkonen scored a goal on four shots, added an assist, doled out six hits, blocked two shots and went plus-2 in Thursday's 3-2 win over the Kraken in Game 2.
Lehkonen got the Avalanche on the board in the second period and set up Devon Toews' game-winner in the third. This was Lehkonen's second multi-point effort in four contests since he returned from a broken finger. After a lackluster Game 1, head coach Jared Bednar rearranged his top six, putting Lehkonen on the top line -- that would be a great spot for him to be in if the alignment continues beyond Thursday.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Goal and assist in return
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Lehkonen tallied a goal and an assist in Thursday's 4-2 win over Winnipeg.
Lehkonen had missed Colorado's previous 15 games after breaking his finger on March 13 against Montreal. He picked up where he left off, assisting on Evan Rodrigues' tally early in the third period before burying an empty-netter later in the frame. Lehkonen has 21 goals and 51 points, both career highs, in 63 games. His return has added another scoring threat ahead of the postseason.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Returning to action Thursday
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Lehkonen (finger) will return to the lineup versus Winnipeg on Thursday.
Lekhonen has been out of action since March 13, a span of 15 games. He has 20 goals and 49 points in 62 games this season and should see top-six minutes in the playoffs.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Might return this week
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Lehkonen (finger) might return before the end of the regular season, Ryan Boulding of NHL.com reports.
Colorado will host Winnipeg on Thursday and play in Nashville on Friday. Lehkonen hasn't been in the lineup since March 13 because of the injury. He has 20 goals and 49 points in 62 appearances this season.
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Avalanche's Artturi Lehkonen: Still sidelined versus Oilers
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Lehkonen (finger) will not play in Tuesday's matchup with Edmonton, Ryan Boulding of NHL.com reports.
Lehkonen will be shelved for the 15th consecutive game due to his broken finger but appears to be trending in the right direction. The winger will have two more games to get back into the lineup before the postseason. In the meantime, Valeri Nichuskin and Denis Malgin figure to continue serving in second-line roles.
