The Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars headed into Game 3 of their series tied 1-1 on Wendesday night. On top of it being a Stanley Cup Playoff game, it was an extra special night in Denver because it marked the return of Avs captain Gabriel Landeskog, who hadn’t played since June 2022.
After Landeskog helped the Avalanche win the 2022 Stanley Cup, he underwent knee surgery and ended up missing the entire 2022-2023 season before it was determined that he needed a cartilage transplant. He ended up missing the next two regular seasons as he continued his recovery.
On Wednesday, he played in his first NHL game in 1,033 days. When he was introduced, the crowd went wild.
Gabriel Landeskog is back. pic.twitter.com/Nh5CFXXa6L
— Evan Rawal (@evanrawal) April 24, 2025
Avalanche Captain Gabe Landeskog hitting the ice for the first time in 3 years!
An all time Denver Sports moment & one of the most emotional atmospheres I’ve ever seen. pic.twitter.com/wcfco0KVjj
— Zach Bye (@byesline) April 24, 2025
His children, who were one and two-years old when Landeskog won the Stanley Cup, have grown up quite a bit since his last game.
Gabe Landeskog’s kids waiting for him to come out for pregame warmups 🥹 pic.twitter.com/aWhCQZPAMh
— Romi Bean (@Romi_Bean) April 24, 2025
Landeskog led the Avalanche in +/- during the team’s Stanley Cup run and tallied 11 goals and 11 assists in 20 games that postseason.
