Avalanche's Jared Bednar drops murky Gabriel Landeskog injury update

It's been a long time since the Avalanche captain has played.

The Colorado Avalanche have been without team captain Gabriel Landeskog since he helped lead them to the Stanley Cup in the spring of 2022. He's undergone several surgeries and was hopeful to make a return to action at some point, but it looks like those plans have once again been put on hold.

According to Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar, Landeskog's recovery efforts hit a bit of a snag but that he remains hopeful, via The Denver Gazette.

“I don't know if you can call it that,” he said. “I think there's ups and downs throughout the course of his rehab, especially now when he's feeling better and getting closer. He's pushing himself into different areas. I don't think it's anything unexpected.”

Meanwhile, Avalanche analyst Adrian Dater reported that he's heard from a pair of trusted sources that Landeskog suffered a “significant” setback, potentially putting his career in jeopardy.

“From two trusted sources: Landeskog setback was ‘significant,’” Dater posted on X. “A return at all is in real question. I hope this turns out to be WRONG. He doesn’t deserve this.”

Since winning the Stanley Cup, the Avalanche have won a long postseason series, which came in the spring of 2024 against the Winnipeg Jets. They were ousted in the opening round of the 2023 postseason by the Seattle Kraken; they were later bested by the Dallas Stars in the second round of 2024.

Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog hasn't played since 2022

A native of Stockholm, Sweden, Landeskog was drafted by the Avalanche with the second overall pick in the 2011 NHL Draft.

It wouldn't be long before he made NHL history, becoming the youngest captain in League history (at the time) at 19 years and 286 days. In 738 NHL games, he's scored 248 goals with 323 assists, along with 27 goals and 40 assists in 69 postseason games.

He last played in Game Six of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final; he subsequently underwent arthroscopic knee surgery as well as cartilage transplant surgery.