BREAKING: Gabriel Landeskog Will Play Friday For the AHL’s Colorado Eagles

The hottest ticket in the American Hockey League is in Loveland, Colorado.

The Avalanche and their AHL affiliate announced on Thursday that team captain Gabriel Landeskog is officially set to dress for the AHL’s Colorado Eagles on Friday while on his conditioning assignment. The Eagles host the Henderson Silver Knights, the minor league club for the Vegas Golden Knights. Landeskog took part in morning skate and is good to go for the game.

Landeskog, 32, has not dressed in a hockey game since June 26, 2022 — the night the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in Tampa Bay.

The captain was sent down earlier in the week and began his work with the Eagles by practicing on a line with Taylor Makar and Oskar Olausson. He also took power play drills in his traditional net front position during morning skate.

His long-awaited return to the NHL felt like a pipe dream just over a month ago. But Landeskog kept pushing through his recovery process and has been on the ice for more days than he’s been off of it since April began.

It’s unclear as of now is Landeskog is going to play on Saturday, too. The AHL often has two-game series where a team will host the same opponent on consecutive nights.

Landeskog will meet with the media postgame to answer questions about his recovery process and his return to playing pro hockey. This is a massive step and the biggest development in the long road to getting him back to playing with the Avs. Which, if all goes well, could be as early as the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in less than two weeks.

Head coach Jared Bednar confirmed on Thursday that the captain will play as soon as he’s healthy.