Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog will miss Stanley Cup playoffs in team’s quest to repeat

The defending Stanley Cup champions will continue their uphill battle all season in their quest for a repeat.

The Colorado Avalanche announced Thursday that captain Gabriel Landeskog will not play in the playoffs due to a season-ending knee injury.

Landeskog scored 11 goals and dished out 11 assists in his 20 playoff games last year — scoring twice in Colorado’s Game 3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning and dishing out an assist in the Cup clincher in Game 6.

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The captain had been skating preparing to return from his offseason surgery, but the Avalanche made the decision with two games remaining in the regular season.

The Avalanche have been plagued by injuries in recent weeks: Superstar Cale Makar has missed the last five games with a lower-body injury and his return is up in the air; the same goes for Darren Helm.

Gabriel Landeskog #92 of the Colorado Avalanche lifts the Stanley Cup after defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in Game 6 of the 2022 NHL Stanley Cup Finals at Amalie Arena on June 26, 2022 in Tampa, Florida. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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Defender Josh Manson also doesn’t have a return schedule, having been out since March with a lower-body injury.

The Avalanche’s 105 points are second in the Central Division, one point behind the Dallas Stars. However, Colorado has one game to play and could very well take home its second straight division title.

Gabriel Landeskog #92 of the Colorado Avalanche jumps onto the ice before the game against the Tampa Bay Lightning in game five of the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals at Ball Arena on June 24, 2022 in Denver, Colorado. (Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)

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Colorado defeated Tampa Bay last year after the latter won back-to-back Cups.