The Avalanche are on fire and another key piece is close to returning

The Colorado Avalanche are on a tear right now.

And they could be getting even healthier as soon as Tuesday night against the Vancouver Canucks.

Forward Valeri Nichushkin, who hasn’t played since Nov. 11 while battling an injury, returned to practice on Monday in a regular sweater. Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar provided on an update on the talented winger — and he’s got a real shot to return to the lineup very soon.

Bednar says if Valeri Nichushkin makes it through the day today with no issues, he’s a possibility for tomorrow.

— Evan Rawal (@evanrawal) December 1, 2025

Essentially, Bednar wants to see how Nichushkin’s body responds after a full practice before making a decision. The Avalanche will also have morning skate on Tuesday at Ball Arena, so there should be some more clarification on his status at that point.

Regardless, Nichushkin will be a nice bump to a lineup that is already rolling. Colorado blasted the Canadiens 7-2 on Saturday behind two goals from both Gabriel Landeskog and Brock Nelson.

The Avalanche are 18-1-6 on the season and have 42 points. Even though their 10-game winning streak was snapped by the Wild in a shootout on Friday, they immediately started a new one the next day against Montreal.

Nichushkin has appeared in 17 games this season, tallying five goals and seven assists. He’s been solid, but not spectacular, and yet it hasn’t mattered much for the Avs.

That’s how deep this team is, and a weapon like Nichushkin coming back sooner rather than later is just another scary thought for the rest of the NHL.

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