Mackinnon was back skating with Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen at practice on Saturday. He has 61 points in 49 games for the Avalanche this season (24G/37A). Colorado went 4-4 without Mackinnon in the lineup.
Mackinnon appeared to be ready to return as he was a full participant at Thursday's practice, but shortly after the Avs announced he would not be travelling to Winnipeg. His next chance to return is Sunday vs. Edmonton.
MacKinnon is two weeks into a 2-4 week timetable, so he appears to be right on track in his recovery. The next step is for MacKinnon to ditch the no-contact sweater, which could happen later this week. MacKinnon will need a few practices before he’s set to return to the lineup.
Helm missed Monday’s practice and is questionable for Tuesday’s game vs. the Bruins. Helm recently returned to the Red Wings’ lineup and has picked up five points (1G / 4A) in three games, so Detroit could certainly use his services as they get set to face the hottest team in hockey.
It looks like the Avalanche avoided disaster here as MacKinnon’s shoulder injury is only expected to sideline him for about one week. The Avalanche likely won’t disclose a full timetable until Thursday but the preliminary indications are positive. MacKinnon won’t play Thursday but has not officially been ruled out for Saturday’s game.
MacKinnon was hurt in Tuesday’s overtime loss in Vancouver and won’t play in Edmonton. This is a horrible loss for the Avalanche, who have been absolutely carried by MacKinnon since the Matt Duchene trade. Since then, MacKinnon leads the NHL with 49 points (21G / 28A) in 36 games. It sounds like he is more day-to-day than long-term so monitor his status heading into the weekend.
Blackwood, 21, was a second round pick (No.42 overall) in 2015 and has earned a call-up because Cory Schneider (lower-body) and Keith Kinkaid (groin) are both hurt. Blackwood, who has gone 5-12-0 with a 3.64 GAA and .877 SV% in 23 games with Binghamton, will backup Ken Appleby on Thursday.
Helm has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury and is expected to miss at least three more games as the Red Wings head into the All-Star break.
Helm was already ruled out of Tuesday's game vs. the Stars but head coach Jeff Blashill made it clear this morning that the veteran forward won't be back until next week at the earliest and even that may be optimistic.
Helm will miss his second consecutive game with a lower-body injury and is listed as day-to-day. With Helm out, Dominic Turgeon is expected to remain in the lineup vs. the Stars.
This is a tough way for Cogliano’s ironman streak to come to an end. After 830 consecutive games, Cogliano will miss Monday’s game against the Avalanche. Cogliano is eligible to play Friday vs. the Kings.
Parise will be in the lineup and skate on a line with Charlie Coyle and Chris Stewart. Parise’s best days are behind him but he still brings a lot off goal scoring prowess to the Wild’s lineup.
After just one game with Iowa (AHL) and a few practices with the Wild, Parise is set to make his season debut on Tuesday. After missing the first 39 games of the season with a back injury, Parise comes into 2017-18 after picking up just 19 goals and 23 assists (42 points) in 69 games last year.
Parise recorded one assist in last night’s game with Iowa and that marked the end of his conditioning stint. Recalling Parise already means one of two things: 1) he felt great and could join the Wild lineup soon. 2) it didn’t go well and he needs more time and that is why he’s still on LTIR.
