ANAHEIM, Calif. — There were plenty of rumors that had him heading elsewhere, but defenseman John-Michael Liles was on the Avalanche’s bus following Wednesday’s morning skate at the Honda Center — past the end of the NHL trade deadline.
Liles’ big contract and lack of playing time in recent weeks led to the speculation, but he stayed put, and Avs general manager Greg Sherman said the team still has faith in him.
“John-Michael Liles is going to be the kind of player we expect him to be again,” Sherman said. “He helps give us a lot of depth still on the blue line, and we feel good about that going forward in the final push.”
Sherman declined to get into specifics of whether he tried to trade Liles, who had a no-movement clause as part of his contract that could have nullified a trade to 12 of the other 29 NHL teams.
Liles said he was glad to remain with the Avs.
“I’ve said from Day One I want to stay in Colorado,” Liles said. “Trade deadline, it’s kind of always in the back of your mind. Once it passes, it’s always a bit of a relief.”
Hejduk still out.
Milan Hej- duk skated hard and seemingly without pain Wednesday morning, but backs are tricky things and the veteran winger remained sidelined for Colorado’s game with Anaheim.
Hejduk’s right knee is fine now, but the back spasms that flared up Monday morning hadn’t subsided to the point where he thought he could return to the lineup. He hopes to play tonight against the Phoenix Coyotes and said he felt better overall Wednesday.
Footnotes.
Avs defenseman Kyle Cumiskey also skated and said his concussion symptoms had improved, but he did not play against Anaheim. . . . Kevin Porter, acquired from Phoenix on Wednesday, was assigned to Lake Erie of the AHL.
Adrian Dater, The Denver Post
