In mid-May, just before the fourth game of the second round between Colorado and Dallas, the National Hockey League and the NHL Players Association announced the suspension of Valeri Nichushkin. He was transferred to the third stage of the NHLPA and NHL Player Assistance Program.
The Colorado forward was suspended for at least six months without pay. Once the ban expires, he will be eligible to apply for reinstatement.
Nichushkin seriously disappointed the Avalanche for the second year in a row. The Avalanche ultimately failed to overcome Dallas and were eliminated early again.
Val was on fire, but in the end she still disappointed:
“It’s disgusting.” Three Russians let down the United States in the NHL playoffs
“Transferred last week to the NHLPA’s third stage and the NHL Player Assistance Program and suspended from playing for at least six months, Valery Nichushkin will not play in the NHL until at least November. If he is cleared to return to the league, I can’t imagine he will be allowed back into the Avalanche locker room. While most of the players in the locker room said the right things (or nothing at all), you could hear the disappointment in their voices.
Nichushkin let them down for the second straight season at the most crucial time of the year. I really hope Val can get the help he needs on a personal level, but in business, tough decisions have to be made. “The Avalanche just need to find a way to move forward without their big forward,” Colorado Hockey Now writer Evan Raval wrote in May.
So now there are two main questions.
Is everything okay with Val still?
And will they be able to forgive him for the club’s second “tune-up”?
“Time heals all wounds. We will talk to our team, we will try to explain to them what exactly we need to see from each one in terms of effort and attitude, how involved they should be and how much they should demonstrate it through their actions.
Valery Nichushkin
Photo: Julio Cortez/AP/TASS
“Val has been disappointing us in this regard for the last few years. It’s a slightly different situation when it comes to someone’s personal life. I truly believe Val cares. In fact, I think he’s a very good teammate. He still has room to grow,” Colorado head coach Jared Bednar said recently.
When it became clear that Nichushkin’s troubles were not over, it was very surprising.
In the first round of the 2023 playoffs with Seattle, Valery unexpectedly left Avalanche camp and literally disappeared from the media space. It was unclear what happened to him or what condition he was in.
And although the forward returned to the Avalanche and had a great start to the 2023/2024 season, in January he unexpectedly ended up in the NHL’s Hockey Player Assistance Program. Then Nichushkin missed two months. And two more months after returning I found myself back in the program…
What happened in Seattle?
“He was taken away for his own safety.” New details of the scandalous Nichushkin case
“I’m sure Val will have something to say to the guys in the locker room. But again, we understand that he is part of our team and he is a big and important part of our team. We will try to do everything we can to support him and make sure he can play the entire season or be available starting in November,” Bednar said.
The saddest thing: Nichushkin had the best season of his career. In 54 regular season games, Val scored 53 (28+25) points. And in eight playoff games, the Russian scored 10 (9+1) points. He scored in seven consecutive games, including a hat trick against Winnipeg. Surprisingly, Valery needed only eight games to secure himself the sixth place on the list of the best snipers of the Stanley Cup. Right after Leon Draisaitl, who played 25 games…
“That’s what a team is: it’s a family. Sometimes you have to be able to take a beating, but there has to be a bit of forgiveness as well. I think Val probably has something to say to the team,” Bednar reiterated.
The Avalanche head coach said that the club is waiting for a response from the NHL on the details of when Nichushkin will be able to start training with the team. And, judging by his words, the specialist has not lost faith in the 29-year-old forward.
Valery Nichushkin
Photo: Erin Hooley/AP/TASS
Valery is under contract with Colorado through the end of the 2029/2030 season. He signed an eight-year, $49 million contract in 2022.
Avalanche director of hockey operations Joe Sakic also seems optimistic. He at least wants to give Nichushkin a chance and is looking forward to his return.
“Nichushkin should be allowed to play. We hope he will return in mid-November. I hope his problems will be solved. He is a great player. We hope he will come back, remain a great hockey player and just help us,” Sakic said on AltitudeSR.
This summer Valery admitted what happened to him:
“All this puts a lot of pressure on the psyche.” Nichushkin told everything about the scandalous incident in Seattle
Let’s see in what condition Val returns to the game. We hope that now the hockey player will be able to solve all his problems and maintain the highest level he demonstrated during the last season. In the meantime, I would like to be glad that Colorado meets halfway with Nichushkin and once again shows humanity.
