Avalanche forward Jonathan Drouin out for first round series vs. Jets

The National Hockey League Stanley Cup Playoffs got underway on Saturday, but one of the biggest news items was an injury. According to the Associated Press, Colorado Avalanche announced that left winger Jonathan Drouin of Ste-Agathe, Quebec will miss the Western Conference first round series versus the Winnipeg Jets because of a lower-body ailment.

How did Drouin get hurt?

Drouin’s injury was bizarre to say the least. In a completely meaningless game, he tried to trip Edmonton Oilers defenseman Cody Ceci in a 5-1 Avalanche win. Instead, Drouin missed Ceci completely, and it was Drouin who slid into the boards awkwardly. Even though the Avalanche beat the Oilers by four goals, this game was more of a loss for the Avalanche than a win. The Oilers meanwhile were completely smart in not playing Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Evan Bouchard, Zach Hyman, Mattias Ekholm, and Brett Kulak.

Jonathan Drouin in 2023-24

This past season, Drouin had 19 goals and 37 assists for 56 points in 79 games. He was a +12 with 28 penalty minutes, 19 power-play points, two game-winning goals, 127 shots on goal, 44 faceoff wins, 33 blocked shots, 41 hits, 38 takeaways, and 30 giveaways. Drouin’s first game-winning goal this season came on March 24 in a 5-4 Colorado overtime win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Nathan MacKinnon of Halifax, Nova Scotia and Cale Makar of Calgary, Alberta had the assists on an all-Canadian goal. Drouin’s second game-winning goal this season came on April 4 in a 5-2 Avalanche win over the Minnesota Wild. Drouin put the Avalanche up 3-1 at the 43 second mark of the second period. Devon Toews of Abbotsford, British Columbia and MacKinnon had the assists on another all-Canadian goal.

Saturday Game Ones

In Saturday’s action, the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New York Islanders 3-1. Evgeny Kuznetsov of Chelyabinsk, Russia and Martin Necas of Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic each had a goal and an assist. Meanwhile, the Boston Bruins trounced the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-1. Jake DeBrusk of Edmonton, Alberta led the Bruins with three points (two goals and one assist).