The Colorado Avalanche announced that forward Mikko Rantanen is sidelined “for weeks” with an upper-body injury.
Mikko Rantanen will be out weeks with an upper-body injury. #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/BzL621dzsn
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) February 18, 2020
Mikko Rantanen Injured
- Rantanen was injured in the second period of Monday’s game at home against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was tripped by Erik Cernak and went heavily into the boards behind the Lightning net, immediately going to the Avalanche dressing room once he could leave the ice.
So far this season, Rantanen has scored 19 goals and 40 points in just 41 games. This will be his second lengthy injury-related absence this season. He previously missed 16 games with a leg injury early in the year.
In his first two seasons, Rantanen showed promise. In his last three, he has produced at over a point-per-game clip. He has scored 249 points in just 280 career NHL games, all with Colorado. The Avalanche originally drafted him 10th overall in the 2015 NHL Draft.
Update: Adrian Dater, of Colorado Hockey Now, reports that it is a broken collarbone, though the team has not yet confirmed that.
I’m hearing broken collarbone on Rantanen. 6-8 weeks normal timetable
— Adrian Dater (@adater) February 18, 2020
What This Means for the Future
Rantanen is a vital part of Colorado’s attack, forming one of the best lines in hockey with Gabriel Landeskog and Nathan MacKinnon. It has been difficult keeping all three healthy at the same time, Landeskog also missing 16 games so far.
MacKinnon has succeeded without them. He has scored 80 points in his 57 games so far, but there is only so many times he can be relied on alone.
With a week to go before the trade deadline, the Avalanche have hit injury trouble. Goalie Philipp Grubauer and winger Matt Calvert both left their game against the Los Angeles Kings two days prior. They join Nazem Kadri, who was injured long-term just a week ago, and Colin Wilson who was injured in November and has yet to return.
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