The Colorado Avalanche were simply glad to have Artturi Lehkonen back playing this season. His recent performances have proven he’s getting back to his old self again. The Avs forward suffered a scary neck injury against the Seattle Kraken on Nov. 9 that landed him in the hospital and in a neck brace for two weeks.
Lehkonen has been back for seven games, steadily improving before breaking through with a four-point night in the Avalanche’s 6-3 victory over the Washington Capitals on Feb. 13. It was an important performance for the Avs since it helped snap a four-game losing streak. However, it was more important for Lehkonen, because he’s likely to be an important cog for Colorado down the stretch.
Lehkonen Is an Underrated Contributor
The spotlight in Colorado gets pretty crowded with the likes of Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Mikko Rantanen. That doesn’t even include team captain Gabriel Landeskog, who is sidelined this season following knee surgery. Lehkonen has silently flown under the radar despite scoring a career-high 21 goals last season and making major contributions during the team’s run to the Stanley Cup in 2022.
He was the team’s third-leading goal scorer last season – behind MacKinnon and Rantanen – despite missing 18 games. At the end of the 2021-22 campaign, Lehkonen also scored six goals in 16 games with the Avalanche after coming to Denver in a trade-deadline deal with the Montreal Canadiens. He added eight more goals in the Avalanche’s 20 postseason games that season, including the overtime winner to clinch the Western Conference Final and title-clinching tally in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final.
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Lehkonen also got off to a good start this season, with two goals and four assists in the team’s first five games. Then the Avs hit a lull at the beginning of November, and Lehkonen’s season was brought to a screeching halt when that contact with Seattle’s Jamie Oleksiak forced him headfirst into the boards on Nov. 9. Colorado’s depth allowed them to stay afloat in his absence, but he has shown his worth since his return. His four points against the Capitals stand out, but he’s logging nearly 18 minutes a game and is getting more comfortable settling back into his role.
What Lehkonen Means to Avalanche Depth
Colorado has a lot of weapons, but Lehkonen is a valuable piece to their overall system. He gets minutes in every phase of the game – logging more than 200 minutes on the power play and almost 100 minutes on the penalty kill last season. His time on special teams accounted for roughly a quarter of his total minutes played in 2022-23. It’s hard enough to replace a consistent second-line winger, but the Avalanche had the daunting task of replacing all of those other crucial minutes on special teams.
Getting Lehkonen back in full swing means more stability all over the ice. He’s slotted back into the left wing spot on the second line with Ross Colton and Miles Wood, but he is also back on the team’s top power-play with MacKinnon, Makar, Rantanen and Jonathan Drouin. The Avalanche power play has been stellar this season, sitting seventh in the NHL at 24.1 percent. Lehkonen scored 20 of his 51 points on the power play last season, and he will only add that to the Avalanche’s depth on the man advantage.
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His return also bolsters a team missing a potent scorer in Valeri Nichushkin, who has taken leave in the NHL’s player assistance program. By the time February rolls around, every team is facing certain bumps and bruises, but getting a player like Lehkonen back in the lineup is a luxury most teams don’t get. He’s only played in 19 games this season, but he should be a valuable piece over Colorado’s last 28 games of the campaign.
Why Lehkonen is Crucial Down the Stretch
Aside from the added depth and quality minutes on the power play, Lehkonen could be one of the Avalanche’s most important players at even strength during the upcoming run for the postseason. There is no timetable on when Nichushkin may return, but it’s assumed he’ll be back sometime this season. That means he could slot over at the other wing with Nichushkin on the second line, but Lehkonen could also be moved to the top line or the third line to deliver a scoring punch in both spots.
His availability will be his most crucial asset because it gives the team several options. Drouin has been playing with more consistency on the top line, and Nichushkin will likely contribute no matter where he gets slotted in when he returns. The line of Lehkonen, Colton and Wood combined for four goals and four assists in their last game together, so expect to see more of that combination as well.
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All of these options could make for some tough lineup decisions for coach Jared Bednar, but that’s always a good problem to have. He’s been back for just seven games, but Lehkonen’s return enables the Avs to put a variety of potent combinations together. That’s a big boost for a team to get that from one player, and it will be an invaluable asset in the playoffs. The postseason is when adjustments need to be made on the fly, and Lehkonen gives the Avalanche a Swiss Army knife to plug into a multitude of places. He might not be one of Colorado’s All-Stars, but a healthy Lehkonen will play a pretty big role if the Avalanche want to get back to the top of the Western Conference.