Avalanche’s Devon Toews to return after 13-game absence

The Colorado Avalanche are set to get a major boost to their lineup on Monday night, as defenseman Devon Toews is set to return from an injury that has held him out of the team’s past 13 games.

According to Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette, Toews was in his usual spot on the Avalanche’s top pairing alongside Cale Makar at the team’s morning skate, and play-by-play announcer Connor McGahey later shared that Toews was good to go for this evening’s showdown against the Detroit Red Wings.

Toews, a 31-year-old native of British Columbia, last appeared on January 3 in a 5-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. In his 48 appearances this regular season, Toews has 13 points on a goal and 12 assists while skating to a plus-26 rating on an average of 22:19 of time on ice per game.

Prior to Colorado’s first full game without Toews during this stretch, the Avs had a league-best 31-2-7 record, and his absence has been notable in that they have gone 5-6-2 in the 13 games they’ve played without him.

Colorado still owns the best record in the NHL at 36-8-9 despite the recent slump, but there is no question that Toews’ return will provide a much-needed boost to the team’s defensive structure and performance.

Toews is set to take his usual spot on Makar’s left not only on Monday but also for Team Canada at the upcoming Olympic Games in Milano-Cortina. The duo performed quite well last year as Canada won the 4 Nations Face-Off, and there was little question that Toews’ ability and chemistry alongside the two-time Norris Trophy winner made him worthy of a spot this time around, too.

Monday night’s game is a second half of a home-and-home between two historic rivals in Colorado and Detroit. The Avs went into Little Caesars Arena on Saturday afternoon and picked up a much-needed 5-0 win without some key players to get back into the win column.