The Colorado Avalanche were dealt a troubling injury blow in Game 1 against the Edmonton Oilers when starting goaltender Darcy Kuemper exited the game. The Avalanche described the knock as an upper-body injury, and he was replaced by backup Pavel Francouz. Per Peter Baugh, ahead of Game 2, Kuemper was not on the ice for Colorado's Thursday morning skate, which certainly doesn't bode well for his availability against the Oilers.

The Avs had two goalies on the ice for their morning skate, Francouz and emergency backup Justus Annunen, who was only recently added to the roster from the Colorado Eagles following the conclusion of the AHL season. With Kuemper not on the ice for the morning skate, it's expected that it will be Francouz starting in the cage for the Avalanche on Thursday night.

Francouz came on in the second period during Game 1, in what was ultimately a 14-goal affair that featured both goaltenders from both teams. Francouz surrendered three goals in the 8-6 win, registering 18 saves for a save percentage of just .857. Kuemper had surrendered three goals while making 13 saves in the game.

Edmonton's offense has been scorching hot of late, so not having Kuemper is very worrying for the Avalanche. With Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl always a lethal threat, it doesn't help the Avs that Zach Hyman and Evander Kane have upped their games to unimaginable levels during the playoffs. Hyman is in the midst of a six-game goalscoring streak, and will look to add to that against Francouz on Thursday night.

The Avalanche have remained mostly tight-lipped regarding Kuemper's injury, so it's unclear whether or not the team is expecting him to be available for Game 3 when the series shifts to Edmonton.