Jack Johnson joins Nathan MacKinnon in Avalanche COVID-protocol absence

The Avalanche volition beryllium without six players successful Saturday night’s crippled against the visiting St. Louis Blues.

Defenseman Jack Johnson became the 4th nonaccomplishment successful the opening week of the play erstwhile the squad announced helium has joined prima halfway Nathan MacKinnon successful COVID protocol. Forwards Gabe Landeskog (suspension) and Valeri Nichushkin (upper-body injury) are besides unavailable against the Blues.

Defenseman Devon Toews and goalie Pavel Francouz began the play connected injured reserve.

Colorado had conscionable 17 skaters and 2 goalies enactment successful Saturday’s greeting skate astatine Ball Arena, and the nine mightiness lone person a 19-player lineup to beryllium salary-cap compliant.

“Put it this way, it’s going to beryllium a blender,” Avs manager Jared Bednar said of his lineup aft the greeting skate. “You tin spell done the roster of the guys we got present and immoderate of our apical guys volition get other ice. It whitethorn beryllium a blender from the start. There’s a batch of question marks.”

Forwards Stefan Matteau and Dylan Sikura volition marque their Avalanche debuts aft being recalled from the AHL’s Colorado Eagles connected Friday. New defenseman Kurtis MacDermid, who was the lone steadfast scratch successful Wednesday’s 4-2 opening-night triumph implicit the Chicago Blackhawks, volition besides marque his squad debut.

“It’s going to beryllium a large trial for our squad but I cognize there’s a batch of guys successful the locker country that are truly excited, myself included,” Avs guardant Tyson Jost said. “It’s St Louis, too, truthful it’s ever a large crippled playing those guys. It’s a bully part rival and I cognize we’re going to beryllium excited.”

A pregame ceremonial to grant precocious wide manager Pierre Lacroix is scheduled to statesman astatine 6 p.m., an hr earlier the game. Lacroix died astatine property 72 successful December to a COVID-related illness. The 30-minute lawsuit volition see immoderate of the Avalanche’s all-time large players, including Peter Forsberg.

“It’s a peculiar night,” Jost said. “Hearing stories from immoderate of the guys that were successful the enactment erstwhile helium was around, I heard thing but large things. I heard helium was large person, large astatine what helium did, truthful it’ll beryllium truly peculiar and it’s large to grant him and the large bequest helium near behind.”