AVALANCHE WRAP: Manson looks great, Landeskog surgery update, Jost trade aftermath

Well, that was quite a defensive clinic the Colorado Avalanche put on tonight in Los Angeles. At Crypto.com Arena, the Avs shut out the Kings 3-0 behind the second straight shutout from Darcy Kuemper.

“The guys did an unbelievable job in front of me,” said Kuemper, who now has five shutouts on the season overall, making 23 saves.

That’s for sure. The Avs didn’t get the Kings much at all. The Avs have now allowed just one goal at even-strength in the last three games. How did newcomer Josh Manson look? Very good, thank you very much. Manson, after flying from New York overnight, played 18:41 and was credited with 10 hits. He was a plus-1 and played 1:12 on the penalty kill. At even strength, he was paired with Ryan Murray.

Mikko Rantanen, Valeri Nichushkin and J.T. Compher scored the goals for Colorado, who now get a couple days off in sunny California before playing their next game, Friday in San Jose.

It capped a tumultuous day in L.A., which earlier saw the trading of Tyson Jost to Minnesota for Nico Sturm, who Jared Bednar said was a “forward version of Josh Manson.”

Still, it wasn’t easy saying goodbye to Jost, both Compher, Kuemper and Bednar said.

“That was a tough one today because me, like everyone else in our locker room and organization, have a ton of respect for Josty. Great attitude, comes to work every day with a smile on his face. Never once during my time here with Josty did I ever doubt his care or drive,” Bednar said.

Said Compher: “It’s no secret that me and Josty were really close. You just wish him the best moving forward. He was a great teammate.”

Sturm, who is expected to play Friday in San Jose, was still gathering his stuff for a departure for a new team. Jost is expected to play for the Wild Wednesday night at home against Boston.

LANDESKOG UPDATE

Bednar said that the knee surgery to Avs captain Gabe Landeskog was a success, but that doctors haven’t given a definitive timetable on a return yet. But, he said, Landeskog was “confident” he’d return for the playoffs, “if not sooner.”

If Landeskog is put on LTIR, the Avs could use his $7 million cap hit for perhaps a big acquisition by the March 21 NHL trade deadline. Claude Giroux remains a possibility. He will play his 1,000th game as a Flyer on Thursday night, then is expected to be moved by Monday.

NOTEBOOK: Wild GM Bill Guerin, talking to reporters, said this about Jost: “I think he needs an opportunity to showcase his skills more. I think he’ll be able to get that with us. I think it’s a win-win because I think both players were in need of a change. We’re very excited to have Tyson. We think there’s a lot more potential for Tyson to grow and become the player that he wants to be.” … Colorado is the first team to reach 90 points this season and did it in 61 games, faster than any other club in franchise history. … Valeri Nichushkin scored his 15th goal of the season, setting a new career high. His previous best was 14 goals during his rookie season with Dallas in 2013-14. Nichushkin’s marker came on the power play and was his third of the season with the man advantage, which also sets a new career high. His previous best was two power-play tallies during that same 2013-14 campaign.

THOUGHTS AND OBSERVATIONS

• With Manson on the ice, boy, it sure seemed like the Avs were a whole lot bigger out there overall. At least, to me.
• Manson was actually on the ice and bobbled the puck a little, leading to a Kings goal. But, replays showed the Kings were offside before the shot, so the shutout was preserved and Manson maintained his plus-1 showing for the night.
• I really liked the way all four lines skated. They got in behind the Kings’ D and didn’t spend a lot of time in their zone tonight. The Kings have a lot of injuries right now, but the Avs just dominated defensively.
• I thought Rantanen was really, really good tonight. He had a goal and assist.
• I think Sturm is really going to help the fourth line, at both ends of the rink. He likes to play a really physical, forechecking game, and he’s going to add a lot of size and strength to that PK unit.
• Avs will take Wednesday off from all hockey activities.