Avalanche Get Unfortunate Update on Artturi Lehkonen's Status for Season

Colorado Avalanche captain Nathan MacKinnon dropped the news on reporters this week that teammate Artturi Lehkonen will not be in the Avs' opening night lineup. And now we're learning that he won't be a full participant in camp next week.

Nathan MacKinnon said Tuesday that teammate Artturi Lehkonen’s “not starting the season” in the Avalanche lineup.

Reached out to an Avs spokesperson for an official update:

Lehkonen, who had offseason shoulder surgery, won’t be a full participant when training camp opens next…
— John Matisz (@MatiszJohn) September 13, 2024

Lehkonen had a rough year on the injury front, and spent the summer recovering from offseason shoulder surgery that will leave him unable to start the regular season on time. The team has confirmed that there is no firm timeline for a return.

He has been making progress on the ice the past few weeks, and Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now says Lehkonen has "gone from barely shooting the puck to putting some real zip on his shots".

The Avs' top-six forward followed up his first 20-goal season in 2022-23 with seven points in the team's first 10 games, before suffering an upper-body injury that kept him out for two-and-a-half months, and other nagging injuries that he battled all season.

He finished with 16 goals and 18 assists for 34 points in 45 games and then had a tremendous postseason, with a goal in all five games of their first-round triumph over the Winnipeg Jets, and 11 points in 11 playoff games overall.

The 29-year-old Finnish forward is in the middle of a five-year, $4.5 million AAV contract.