Nathan MacKinnon Injury Update: Avalanche Star Confirmed for Game 4 Despite Right Knee Concern
He took a shot off the knee in Game 3, had to be helped off the ice, and still came back to play. Now, with Colorado staring down elimination, Nathan MacKinnon is confirmed for Game 4 tonight in Las Vegas.
- MacKinnon appeared to injure his right knee blocking a shot from Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore during Game 3 on Sunday and had to be helped off the ice at 12:15 of the second period. He returned for two more shifts in the second and came back for the third, taking four shifts including 1:59 on the power play.
- Coach Jared Bednar confirmed MacKinnon will play in Game 4 on Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena, noting the trainers had worked to loosen up the knee and get him to a point where he can play unencumbered.
- Valeri Nichushkin, who also sustained a lower-body injury late in the second period of Game 3, will be a game-time decision for Colorado. Bednar offered no details beyond "we'll see" after an optional morning skate Tuesda
Nobody in the building on Sunday thought Nathan MacKinnon was coming back. When the shot from Shea Theodore caught him flush on the right knee and he went down, then had to be helped off the ice, the working assumption was that Colorado's best player was done for the night, possibly longer. Then he came back. Twice.
That is the context for what is happening tonight. MacKinnon is confirmed to play Game 4. Colorado is down 3-0 in the series. And the Avalanche are the only team in NHL history that truly cannot afford to play a single game without him.
What Happened in Game 3
The injury occurred at 12:15 of the second period when MacKinnon blocked a shot from Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore. The contact appeared to catch his right knee directly, and he had to be helped to the bench and off the ice. For a player who almost never leaves the ice under any circumstances, the sight of him needing assistance said everything about the severity of the initial impact.Â
What happened next said something different. He returned for two more shifts before the end of the second period, came back out for the third, and took four shifts including nearly two minutes on the power play. By Bednar's own admission, he did not look 100 percent.
Bednar's description of the moment was worth sitting with. He said he has been in Colorado for 10 years and has only seen MacKinnon lay on the ice twice. He said MacKinnon was clearly in a ton of pain. And then he said that whatever MacKinnon could give them, even if it was just power play shifts and empty-net situations, it was still better than anything else they could put on the ice. That quote tells you both how serious the injury was and how irreplaceable MacKinnon is to this team.
What It Means for Tonight
MacKinnon won the Rocket Richard Trophy this season with 53 goals and finished the regular season with 127 points in 80 games, third in the NHL behind Connor McDavid and Nikita Kucherov. In 12 playoff games so far, he has 15 points, seven goals and eight assists.
He has two assists through the first three games against Vegas specifically. His track record in elimination situations is notable: in 15 career games when Colorado is facing a playoff exit, he has 14 points, five goals and nine assists, with a 7-8 record in those games. He knows how to show up when the season is on the line.