NEWS: Artturi Lehkonen Leaves With Broken Finger, Surgery Required

It was shaping up to be an incredible night for Artturi Lehkonen. He scored two goals, got a standing ovation from the Montreal crowd, and was close to finishing off the hat-trick.

The way the night ended is just a shame.

Lehkonen, who is the fourth leading scorer on the Colorado Avalanche with 49 points, left the game in the second period. After the game was finished, head coach Jared Bednar announced that Lehkonen had broken his finger. The injury occurred when he was hit by a shot.

He will fly back to Denver immediately for surgery. A timeline for his expected recovery was not immediately provided.

Per Bednar – Lehkonen has a broken finger. #GoAvsGo

— AltitudeTV (@AltitudeTV) March 14, 2023

It’s terrible news, not just for the Avalanche, but for Lehkonen. This has been a breakout year for him offensively, easily his best in the NHL to date.

The Avalanche rely heavily on him, not just offensively, but defensively as well, as he’s a big part of their penalty kill. Lehkonen is currently 11th in the NHL in average time on ice per game at 20:45 a night.

This is a big hole to fill in the Avalanche lineup, and with the trade deadline already passed, the replacement will have to come from within.

With the playoffs starting in a little over a month, there is time for the injury to heal. The Avalanche just have to hope they can get him back in time for the playoffs. Ryan O’Reilly recently broke his finger for the Maple Leafs, and it was announced he would miss 4-6 weeks. A similar timeline would have Lehkonen returning around the start of the playoffs.

Stay tuned to CHN for any updates on Lehkonen as they come in.