HIGHLIGHTS
- Jared Bednar took a puck to the face and was hospitalized during Saturday’s OT loss to Vegas
- He has facial fractures and a corneal abrasion but won’t need surgery
- See the video of the incident below, plus details on who’s coaching in his absence
Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar has facial fractures and a corneal abrasion after taking a puck to the face during Saturday night’s 3-2 overtime loss to Vegas. He won’t need surgery and is expected to make a full recovery.
The Avalanche announced Sunday morning that he won’t travel with the team for their final two regular season games at Edmonton and Calgary. Assistants Nolan Pratt and Dave Hakstol will run the bench.
The incident happened with 16:39 left in the third period. Knights defenseman Keegan Kolesar tried to clear the puck with Jack Drury pressuring him. It sailed over the boards and into the Colorado bench, catching Bednar on the right cheek.
He went down immediately. A trainer helped him to the locker room.
Watch the video of the play below:
“It’s certainly a little unnerving,” Pratt said after the game. “It’s scary when the pucks are flying in there. It takes a little second to sort of recalibrate and then get back to it.”
VP Brendan McNicholas confirmed Bednar was fully alert and conscious when he left. He was taken to a local hospital for a CT scan.
Hakstol took over behind the bench for the rest of Saturday’s game.
The bigger question is the playoffs. The Presidents’ Trophy winners open the first round next week, and Bednar’s timeline for returning hasn’t been specified beyond the two-game trip. No surgery is a good sign, but facial fractures aren’t exactly a quick heal.
Bednar, 54, is in his 10th season as Colorado’s head coach. He guided the team to the Stanley Cup in 2022.
Defenseman Josh Manson also left Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury in the second period. No update on him yet either.
Heading into the postseason with their coach and a top-four defenseman both banged up is far from ideal, even for the league’s best team.
