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Hejduk will play Saturday, might be his last NHL game

Columbus Blue Jackets v Colorado Avalanche

the Columbus Blue Jackets the Colorado Avalanche at the Pepsi Center on March 22, 2011 in Denver, Colorado.

Doug Pensinger

37-year-old forward Milan Hejduk will not play Friday as the 29th place Colorado Avalanche focus on giving their younger players an opportunity to show what they can do. However, Hejduk will participate in the season finale on Saturday, according to the Denver Post.

Although Hejduk hasn’t made it official, there’s a very good chance that it will be his final NHL game. Hejduk, who missed some time with shoulder and torso injuries, averaged just 13:01 minutes of playing time per contest in 28 games this season.

Hejduk has declined in recent years, but in his prime he was an elite player. He reached or surpassed the 70-point mark in five separate seasons and scored a career-high 50 goals in 2002-03. He also played a major role in the Colorado Avalanche winning the Stanley Cup in 2001.

He played all of his 1,019 NHL games with the Avalanche and ranks fourth on the franchise leaderboard with 805 points.