How do you forgive a brother who won’t stop breaking your heart?
“Can they trust him?” ESPN analyst and former NHL goalie Kevin Weekes replied when I asked about Valeri Nichushkin, the Avalanche’s prodigal son. “Only he can answer that. Hopefully, they can.”
Hopefully. The Avs are in trouble deep without him, limping into Game 5 of their best-of-seven playoff series with the Dallas Stars on Wednesday on a three-game losing skid while staring at a 3-1 hole.
Nichushkin, Colorado’s mercurial winger, was suspended by the NHL for six months for violating Stage 2 of the Player Assistance Program before Game 4 at Ball Arena. The shock of the news, coupled with Devon Toews’ injury scratch, put his teammates into a daze from which they never truly recovered. Dallas pounced to a 3-0 lead and rolled, 5-1, thanks to a pair of empty-netters.
“You lose Taser (Devon Toews) and Val (Nichushkin), (those) are big pieces,” second-line center Casey Mittelstadt, who scored the hosts’ only goal during a sad evening, told reporters Tuesday. “And so maybe a little bit (of an adjustment). But you know, (it) seems like we’ve got a really close group in here … guys are ready to step in.
“And yes, (it’s) maybe a little bit (different with no Val) but I think it’s also on us to be ready.”
It’s on Nuke to win back hearts. And minds. Starting with the ones in the Colorado locker room. Quick as he is, Nathan MacKinnon can’t skate away from Father Time forever. Contracts expire. Windows slam shut. The next dynasty elbows its way to the mountain top.
“But if I’m the Avs, they have to be wondering the same thing that you’re wondering,” Weekes continued. “So I understand. They’ve got to be wondering (as) they’ve got designs on winning another Cup. And now with this — it doesn’t enhance their chances, by any stretch. It kind of compounds the difficulty of being able to do that.”
Ya think? The Avs will take the ice at American Airlines Center without Nichushkin, who vanished from their first-round series with Seattle last April under mysterious circumstances, in a postseason tilt for the seventh time over the last 13 months. They won just two of those other six games.
Flip side of the coin: Since April 2022, the Avs are 22-8 (.733) whenever Nichushkin suits up for them in the postseason. After the holy trinity of MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen, The Chu Chu Train is the most crucial cog of the engine. Especially at this time of year, when mismatches on the power play — at 6-foot-4, Nichushkin blots out the sun as well as opposing goalies’ vision — can often mean the difference between parades and penitence.
“This is clearly a challenge that he’s facing,” Weekes continued, “and it’s not limited to him. We all face our own challenges in life.
“In saying that, he is a real piece of their team. We know, obviously, Cale Makar is already one of the best (in the league) at his age. Nate is one of the best in the world. … We know Georgie (Alexandar Georgiev) has become a No. 1 (goalie) out there, and we know the Moose (Mikko Rantanen) is loose. We’re ticking all these boxes.
“But people need to realize that Big Val is a big piece. He’s not a complementary piece anymore. He’s a big producer, especially with the departure of Naz (Kadri, after the ’22 Cup championship). Val’s a big piece of their lineup.”
Trust is a two-way street, though, and Val can’t stop veering into the wrong side of the road.
Monday marked Nichushkin’s third extended absence for off-ice reasons over the last 390-ish days. That’s two departures too many for a roster built on champagne wishes and caviar dreams.
Even with Val gone late Monday night, the elephant in the locker room remained. Can the Avs trust Big No. 13 to be a part of the core that brings Lord Stanley home?
“I have no idea,” coach Jared Bednar said after Game 4. “Yeah. I have no idea.”
Trust is earned on this stage. Never given. The only way out of the ditch is if everybody’s pulling on the same rope.
“(Nichushkin) is very integral to their game with his size, with his hands, his ability to finish, his speed, all those things that he has going for him,” Weekes said. “But most importantly, he has to get well. Whatever well looks like.”
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