The Colorado Avalanche will be without defenseman Samuel Girard for “some time,” head coach Jared Bednar announced on Saturday.
Girard played in the first two games of the season for the Avs, after battling something during training camp, but now he’s on the shelf.
The team is officially calling Girard “week-to-week” with an upper-body injury. Hockey is notoriously secret about not sharing exactly what players are dealing with when it comes to injuries.
Update: Samuel Girard is week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) October 11, 2025
Meanwhile, Ilya Solovyov will slot in for Girard tonight against the Dallas Stars and in the foreseeable future. The Avalanche claimed Solovyov off waivers from the Calgary Flames last week. He’s played in 15 career NHL games, registering four points on four assists.
Colorado is off to a 2-0-0 start on the year, thanks to wins in Los Angeles and at Ball Arena against Utah. They’ll welcome in Dallas later tonight, the team that has knocked them out of the playoffs each of the last two seasons.
And while Girard isn’t as big of a name on defense as the likes of Cale Makar or Devon Toews, the Avalanche will still miss him. Hopefully it’s nothing too serious and he’ll be back on the ice later this month or in early November.
