It's no secret that Gabriel Landeskog will be in the Colorado Avalanche lineup tonight. The fact that he took warmups in Dallas with the Avalanche for the first time in years shows he's healthy and ready to go. Jared Bednar told the media that he doesn't plan on sharing any of the lineup details during this series. This will probably keep Dallas on their toes about when Landeskog will return in this series. However, he will be ready to play in front of the home crowd tonight.
It's been awhile since Landeskog has played in an official NHL game. The last time he played was during the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs when they won it all. Since then, he's had knee after knee issues, keeping him from returning to the NHL. Now that he's ready to go tonight, the Stars better be prepared for the vast crowd momentum factor. This crowd has been waiting for their captain to get back in the lineup for years, and I'm sure it will be deafening inside Ball Arena tonight.
Now the Stars could do the and thing tonight and put Miro Heiskanen back in the lineup. He did travel with the team to Denver in hopes of returning to action in games 3 or 4. I doubt he will return tonight, but crazier things have happened with Pete DeBoer and last-minute additions lineup changes. It wouldn't surprise me if Heiskanen were a late announcement tonight. However, the Stars must deal with the crowd, as Landeskog is returning tonight.
Now, I expect Bednar will have Landeskog start on the third line to ease him into the lineup tonight. I doubt he will get placed on the first or second line. They don't want him to screw up his knee again by giving him a bunch of minutes tonight. It would be like if Pete DeBoer got Robertson back after 2 years and placed him with Jamie Benn and Wyatt Johnston. While Landeskog won't get much playing time tonight, the Stars have to be ready for his ability to score.
In conclusion, it's great to see Landeskog return from the injury he suffered a couple of years ago. I would hate to see one of the Dallas Stars go through what he did and have to retire medically. Landeskog is hungry to get back into the lineup and help the Avalanche move on to the second round of the playoffs. However, as the Avalanche learned on Monday night, Dallas is never out of the fight until the final bell is rung. Let's the games officially begin with Landeskog returning tonight.