Mikko Rantanen’s pursuit of his first 100-point NHL season was squashed by a non-COVID illness that sidelined the Avalanche forward over the past four games.
Don’t worry. He’s not all that broken up about it.
“When you’re closing in on a milestone like that, you’re obviously aware of it,” Rantanen said. “But I wasn’t like crying in my room.”
Rantanen has bigger goals in mind. Like a Stanley Cup.
Colorado’s leading point producer (91) and goal scorer (36), both career-best totals, was scheduled to return to the lineup on Thursday night for the team’s final regular-season home game against the Predators. Rantanen endured a “high fever” before working back into shape.
But Rantanen still has a few hurdles to clear before resuming his dominant play for the Avalanche.
“Just keep it simple. Short shifts, I think. The first one, probably 21 seconds,” Rantanen told reporters on Thursday after morning skate. “I’ve been feeling good the last couple of days on the ice. Building back these last two (games) to get ready for next week. … Itap already going to be like a playoff game almost. (Nashville) could be our opponent in the first round. We’re ready for it.”
Rantanen’s non-COVID illness forced him to watch during the majority of Colorado’s four-game losing streak. He was proud of how the team responded on Tuesday in a 5-3 home win against St. Louis.
“It doesn’t feel good when you see them lose. But guys battled,” Rantanen said. “Itap not easy at this point of the year. Sometimes, when you don’t have anything to play for in the standings wise. But I think guys did a good job and the last game was a good bounce back.”
Rantanen replaced forward Alex Newhook in the lineup on Thursday. Newhook, with 33 points (13 goals) this season, will rest ahead of Friday’s regular-season finale at the Wild.
“(Newhook) went through a little down spurt. Recently, to me, he’s been turning it up a little bit,” coach Jared Bednar said. “He’s been getting more production. … I’d like to see him shoot the puck more. To me, he’s a shooter. He’s a goal scorer. He’s got to get into those areas and he’s got to get his shot off to be a little bit more productive on the offensive side of things.”
Footnotes. Goalie Darcy Kuemper earned the start against Nashville. Backup Pavel Francouz will be in the net on Friday at Minnesota. … Injured forward Gabe Landeskog (knee surgery) participated Thursday in morning skate wearing a no-contact sweater. Bednar confirmed that Landeskog is on track to return for Game 1 of the team’s upcoming first-round Western Conference playoff series. Rantanen said: “We know how big a part of the team he is. It obviously makes everybody happy.” … Injured defenseman Ryan Murray (upper body) has still not been cleared for a return to play.
