Injuries are starting to mount for the Colorado Avalanche, and the latest one on Sunday night involves their biggest player.
Already playing without Erik Johnson, Matt Calvert, and Devon Toews, the Avalanche lost superstar forward Nathan MacKinnon to an undisclosed lower-body injury in their 4-3 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild.
MacKinnon logged 15:24 of ice-time through two periods and recorded a pair of assists before exiting the game.
Avalanche coach Jared Bednar had no update on MacKinnon after the game, and did not even seem sure on when the injury happened. MacKinnon never missed a shift over the first two periods, but did not rejoin the team on the bench for the start of the third period. Colorado began the game with only 11 forwards in its lineup, so the absence of MacKinnon left them even more shorthanded.
It is significant because MacKinnon is one of the top MVP contenders in the league and one of the most dynamic players in the world, recording at least 93 points in each of the past three seasons. With his two helpers on Sunday he is up to 14 points in 10 games so far this season.
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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.