Valeri Nichushkin was cleared Monday to return to practice with the Colorado Avalanche after more than a month away from the team.
Nichushkin last played for the club Jan. 10 at Ball Arena against Las Vegas. He did not play Jan. 13 in Toronto, and then an official announcement that he had entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program came two days later when the team was in Montreal.
He was on the ice Monday for Avs practice at Family Sports Center.
Before entering the program, Nichushkin was one of the hottest goal scorers in the NHL. After a slow start to the season, which coach Jared Bednar noted coincided with the birth of his first child being delayed, Nichushkin had 21 goals and 35 points in the 29 games before he stepped away from the team.
This was the second time in nine months that Nichushkin was unavailable to play for personal reasons. Nichushkin left the Avalanche during its first-round playoff series in April before Game 3 in Seattle. The circumstances with that situation were mysterious at the time.
An intoxicated woman was found in Nichushkin’s hotel room that same day, and a team doctor called for an ambulance to take her to the hospital, according to a Seattle police report.
The team never acknowledged the report, nor did the Avs ever say Nichushkin was punished for what transpired. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said during the 2023 Stanley Cup Final that the league was satisfied with how the situation was handled and Nichushkin was not under investigation.
When this season began, the Avs welcomed Nichushkin back “with open arms.”
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