Gabriel Landeskog is the current captain of the Colorado Avalanche, yet he last played an NHL game on June 22, 2022. The game that he hosted the Stanley Cup after a 2-1 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Landeskog had played the four rounds of playoffs with a lingering injury after an accident in the 2020 playoffs where teammate Cale Makar cut his knee. That accident would then cause a long road of recovery and keep Landskog out of play. As captain, he wanted to help his team to victory, which he did in 2022, but he then had to stay out of play for almost three years as he underwent surgeries to help repair his knee.
Landeskog's return has been something anticipated for a long time now, not only by Avalanche fans, but by majority of the hockey world. Speculation and media would follow Landeskog's recovery on how, when, and even if he would return.
Today's the day we finally get an answer and know we will see Landeskog's return to the Avalanche and be back with the team he leads
The Colorado Avalanche announced today - April 9, 2025 - that Landeskog has been assigned to their affiliate team, the Colorado Eagles, on a conditioning stint. Affiliate AHL teams are where most prospects grow to develop for teams and have players get called up if they experience injuries on their NHL rosters.
But conditioning stints are also a helpful tool that AHL teams can provide as they offer players like Landeskog who have been out of commission for a while while recovery from injuries an opportunity to get their feet back and get back into the game before they return to the big show.
The Colorado Avalanche have already punched their ticket into this year's Stanley Cup playoffs which are scheduled to start on April 19th with just three games left in their regular season. This now means that Landeskog will most likely make his return to the Avalanche roster this season during playoffs, especially if they make it further in the rounds.