Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin listed as day-to-day with lower-body injury

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Avalanche will be without playmaking forward Valeri Nichushkin for an indefinite amount of time due to a lower-body injury.

Coach Jared Bednar said after morning practice Thursday that he would classify Nichushkin as “day-to-day."

“I don’t think it’s really serious, but it could keep him out seven-to-10 days," explained Bednar, whose team hosts the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night. “We’ll just see what the next handful of days looks like and see what kind of progression he makes.”

When he's on the ice, Nichushkin has been a valuable part of the Avalanche. The team is 209-74-27 with Nichushkin in the lineup. He’s tied for fourth on the Avalanche this season with 11 goals despite playing in just 21 games.

Nichushkin was suspended last May for at least six months and placed in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. It was an announcement that came in the middle of Colorado’s playoff run, marking the second straight postseason where the right winger was unavailable because of circumstances away from the ice.

The 29-year-old Nichushkin missed the opening 17 games. He made his season debut on Nov. 15 against Washington.

The banged-up Avalanche recently got back defenseman Josh Manson and forward Jonathan Drouin before losing Nichushkin, who left a New Year's Eve win over Winnipeg.

“Hopefully it’s short for Val," Manson said. “That’s a big loss. ... He’s a big part of our group.”

The Avalanche saw captain Gabriel Landeskog return to the ice Thursday as he skated around with the squad. He hasn't played since Game 6 on June 26, 2022, when the Avalanche beat Tampa Bay to hoist the Stanley Cup.

Landeskog underwent a cartilage transplant in his right knee on May 10, 2023, in an effort to return to the ice.

“All the guys are pretty in-tune with Landy’s recovery process, and the work he’s been putting in to try to get back to our team on a regular basis,” Bednar said. “He’s able to come out and join us and wheel around a little bit. I think it adds to the optimism of his return at some point.”

Bednar said Landeskog is “feeing good.”

“Still no real change in our approach and what’s going on," Bednar added. "He’s just going to keep grinding forward until he gets to a point where he might be able to join the team on a regular basis.”

Notes: The Avalanche signed defenseman Keaton Middleton to a two-year contract extension on Thursday. ... The fire alarm went off while the Avalanche were on the ice for morning skate. “That might be a first for me,” Drouin said. “I've seen it when I was younger at those smaller rinks and you really have to evacuate right away.” Could the culprit for the fire alarm going off have been Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram, who was traded from Colorado to Buffalo last March and is making his return to Ball Arena? "I could see Bo doing something like that,” Drouin cracked.

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Colorado Avalanche right wing Valeri Nichushkin, left, drives downice with the puck as Seattle Kraken right wing Kaapo Kakko (84) and center Matty Beniers, right, defend in the third period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Avalanche right wing Valeri Nichushkin, top, celebrates Artturi Lehkonen's goal with teammates during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Utah Hockey Club, Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Egan)

Colorado Avalanche right wing Valeri Nichushkin (13) and Utah Hockey Club center Kevin Stenlund (82) go after the puck, during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Egan)

VIENNA (AP) — Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said Saturday he will resign in the coming days after talks on forming a new government failed a second time.

The announcement came after the People’s Party and the Social Democrats on Saturday continued coalition talks a day after the liberal Neos party’s surprise withdrawal from discussions.

“Unfortunately I have to tell you today that the negotiations have ended and will not be continued by the People’s Party,” Nehammer, from the conservative People’s Party, said in a statement on social media.

He said that “destructive forces” in the Social Democratic Party have “gained the upper hand” and that the People’s Party will not sign on to a program that it considers to be against economic competitiveness.

Social democratic leader Andreas Babler said he regretted the decision by the People’s Party to end the talks. “This is not a good decision for our country,” he said.

Babler said that one of the main stumbling blocks had to do with how to repair the “record deficit” left by the previous government.

“I have offered to Karl Nehammer and the People’s Party to continue negotiating and called on them not to give up," he told reporters Saturday evening.

The next government in Austria faces the challenge of having to save between 18 to 24 billion euros, according to the EU Commission. In addition, Austria has been in a recession for the past two years, is experiencing rising unemployment, and its budget deficit is currently at 3.7% of Gross Domestic Product — above the EU’s limit of 3%.

Babler blamed the collapse of the negotiations on “forces within the People’s Party” that were against a coalition with the Social Democrats, while praising Nehammer for his readiness to compromise.

It was not immediately clear what would happen next.

The People’s Party will have to search for a replacement for Nehammer, who has always ruled out the possibility of a coalition with far-right leader Herbert Kickl. But Nehammer’s expected resignation could now prompt the party to rethink its options under new leadership.

The People’s Party and the far-right Freedom Party are close on economic policies as well as other issues such as migration and are already working together in four coalitions on the local level.

An early election would be another option.

The talks had dragged on since Austria’s president tasked the conservative chancellor in October with putting together a new government. The request came after all other parties refused to work with the leader of the far-right Freedom Party, which in September won a national election for the first time with 29.2% of the vote.

FILE - Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer attends a press conference in Vienna on Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Heinz-Peter Bader, File)