Matt Duchene News

Duchene missed the morning skate because of an illness, but is still expected to be in the lineup tonight vs. the Islanders. Duchene has been red-hot in the month of November, having recorded 11 goals and nine assists (20 points) in 13 games.

Duchene hasn't played since March 29 because of a knee injury. He missed the final eight games of the regular season and the first five in this best-of-7 series against the Wild, which the Avalanche lead 3-2. Duchene skated on the fourth line with Brad Malone and Maxime Talbot during pregame warmups. It was a different line than he practiced with during the morning skate, when he was between Ryan O'Reilly and PA Parenteau. Duchene led Colorado with 70 points (23 goals, 47 assists) during the regular season.

Duchene took part in the Avalanche's morning skate and was on a line with Ryan O'Reilly and P.A Parenteau which suggests that if he plays, he will not be on the fourth line like head coach Patrick Roy had originally indicated. Duchene has not played since March 29th, but is the Avalanche's top offensive threat and definitely boosts their chances at eliminating the Wild tonight if he is in the lineup.

The early word from the Avs is that Duchene is likely to return on Monday, but head coach Patrick Roy has not confirmed that. Roy said that if Duchene does play, he will likely play on the fourth line and power-play, but I find that hard to believe. The Avalanche will hit the ice for their morning skate shortly, so we will have word on Duchene's availability soon thereafter.

Duchene wasn't confirmed to return today for the Avs but with Patrick Roy calling the shots, a return tonight is entirely possible.

Duchene would add the extra scoring punch that the Avs could desperately use to easily push past the Wild. Instead, look for a Round 2 return from a knee injury at the earliest for the Avs' leading scorer.

Duchene was injured in a collision with his linemate Jamie McGinn on Saturday. This is a tough break for the Avalanche who lose their leading scorer just two weeks before the end of the regular season. Four weeks will have him returning around April 21, which will see him likely miss the majority, if not all of the first-round.

Duchene suffered the injury when he collided with line-mate Jamie McGinn. Duchene played just 32 seconds before retiring to the dressing room. The Avalanche have had a great season and will make the playoffs, but losing Duchene for an extended period of time would be devastating. We will update his status as soon as something is released.

It seems unlikely that Duchene will return tonight, but the status of "game-time decision" leaves the door open for him to improve as the day goes on. If he does not play it will be the fourth straight game that he will miss, but Friday seems like a definite possibility at this point. Monitor his status during pre-game warm-ups.

Duchene appears set to miss his fourth straight game with an oblique injury that he suffered on November 16. Monitor his status following Wednesday's morning skate in case his oblique drastically improves overnight, but it appears like Friday at Minnesota is a more likely return date.

Duchene was on the ice in a non-contact jersey with the team today, but skated on his own. Duchene was only expected to miss a week so there is a chance he could play on Wednesday vs. St. Louis. He will need to shed the non-contact jersey and be a full participant in Tuesday's or Wednesday's practice if he is going to play.

Duchene will miss Thursday's game vs. Phoenix and Saturday against Los Angeles. He could return next Wednesday when the Avalanche take on the Blues.

Duchene was ruled out for at least a week on Monday, but will join the Avs on a two-game trip that begins Thursday at Phoenix and likely practice with the team. Patrick Roy noted that it's "November" with a long season ahead and the team won't rush Duchene back, so the center might not return until next week against the visiting St. Louis Blues. But his recovery has been encouraging.

Duchene suffered the injury in the third period of Saturday's game with Florida. Oblique injuries can be serious, so a one-week prognosis constitutes good news for the Avs. "We will hope it's not more than that, but (Duchene) said he would need about a week," Patrick Roy said. Duchene has been the Avs' best player this season and a strong candidate to make the Canadian Olympic team in Sochi. Nathan MacKinnon is likely to move to center on a top-six line, though that won't be confirmed until Monday.

Duchene injured his foot while blocking a shot on Wednesday. It doesn't sound like Duchene is at 100% but he will play tonight. He has had a fantastic start to the season (10G / 7A) so he should be able to get on the stat sheet again tonight vs. Calgary.

Duchene missed Thursday's practice with a sore foot after blocking a shot on Wednesday. The general feeling was that Duchene would be fine to play tonight, so this is not surprise. Reports are the he is skating well this morning. Duchene has had a torrid start to the season scoring 10 goals and adding seven assists (17 points) in 14 games.

Duchene, 22, has 82 goals and 111 assists in 266 games with the Avalanche. Colorado selected centre Nathan MacKinnon with the first pick in last month's draft and also has Paul Stastny signed for one more season with a cap hit of US$6.6 million. Ryan O'Reilly is expected to move to wing given the Avalanche's depth down the middle. That depth could last a while with Duchene signed through 2018-19.

Duchene will likely rejoin P.A. Parenteau and Jamie McGinn tonight. He is the Avs leading scorer so this is a big return for Colorado who take on Calgary tonight. Duchene only missed one game with a groin injury. He is playing 21+ minutes a game so he should have no problem getting on the stat sheet.

Duchene (groin) will not play tonight when the Avalanche take on the Sharks. He is Colorado's leading scorer with six goals and 11 assists in 17 games. This is a tough break for the Avs who have had to battle through a lot of injuries this season.