As the United States men’s hockey team visited the White House after winning an Olympics gold medal, there was a familiar face missing from the photos and videos: Brock Nelson.
Nelson, along with Canadian Olympians Nathan MacKinnon, Devon Toews, and Cale Makar, did not practice with the Avalanche on Tuesday but are expected to meet the team in Utah on Wednesday when Colorado takes on the Mammoth. Whether they all play remains to be seen.
“We’re going to leave some guys back and they’re going to join us in Utah tomorrow,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said after Tuesday’s practice. “They’re going to fly in (Wednesday) morning, (and we will) try to give them as much rest as they can. The bulk of the team’s going now, and the rest of the guys will come in (Wednesday) and we’ll go from there.”
The majority of the gold medal-winning hockey team was seen on social media Tuesday meeting President Trump after returning back to the United States from Milan. For undisclosed reasons, Nelson was one of the gold medalists who did not join the team in Washington, D.C. Nelson and other U.S. players, including Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger, instead opted to rejoin their NHL squads.
The Avalanche will need all hands on deck coming out of the break. Starting Wednesday in Utah, they’ll play five games in seven days after not having been able to hold a full practice for weeks. Although there’s a chance some of those Olympians won’t play against the Mammoth, it’s unlikely they miss more games barring injury.
“If we make a decision to sit guys on Wednesday, then we’re back to business (the next day),” Bednar said. “If we’re fighting for first place, they’re going to need to play. Our guys are going to have to play.”