Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog is likely to miss significant time after crashing into the goal post during the second period of the team's 2-1 loss to the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers.
Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar was able to provide some detail after Landeskog needed help getting to the Colorado dressing room following the jarring blow. “Upper body, he’s going to miss some time,” Bednar said following the game in Sunrise, Fla, per Rob Rossi of The Athletic. “He’s still getting looked at and diagnosed. Did not look comfortable.”
Landeskog was attempting to split two Panthers defenders when his skate blade appeared to catch a rut in the ice. He went down and hit the goal post with his upper body.
Landeskog nearly lost his career after suffering a devastating knee injury while competing in the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs. He missed nearly three years before he made his return during last year's postseason. He has been surprisingly effective this season with 7 goals and 22 points for the dominant Avalanche.
Colorado defenseman Devon Toews is also likely to “miss some time” with a lower-body injury, according to Bednar.
The loss to the Panthers was just the 3rd regulation defeat suffered by Colorado this season. The defeat ended the Avalanche's 10-game winning streak.
Landeskog has key leadership position on Avalanche
While Landeskog does not light the lamp like high scorers Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas and Cale Makar, his importance to the team is vital. His determination in coming back from multiple knee surgeries has been very inspirational to the team. His ability to show off his skills at the most important moments has led to several victories in Colorado's impressive regular season.
The Avalanche reached the halfway point in the 2025-26 season with a 31-3-7 record and they have an 11-point lead in the Central Division of the Western Conference over the second place Dallas Stars. They rank first in scoring with 165 goals and have allowed the fewest goals with 93.
