Colorado Avalanche star Nazem Kadri, who had surgery on June 6 to repair a thumb injury he sustained from a hit by Evander Kane in the third round of the playoffs, will not play in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final and remains day to day, head coach Jared Bednar said.
Joining him on the sidelines for Game 1 will be Andrew Cogliano, who was hurt after blocking a shot with his right hand in Game 4 of the Oilers series and is also being considered day to day.
The team has consistently said since Kadri's injury happened that they have not ruled him out of the playoffs, though they have stopped well short of confirming he would be able to return before the end of this post-season run.
Kadri left Game 3 of the Western Conference Final after taking a cross-check from Kane, who drew a one-game suspension for the hit.
Kadri has tallied six goals and eights assists for 14 points in 13 games this postseason, including one goal and three assists across three games against Edmonton. Cogliano plays a primary role on the penalty-kill unit.
The Avalanche will be able to deploy Andre Burakovsky in Game 1, though, at full strength. The Avalanche forward was injured in Game 1 of the West Final, when he blocked a shot with his leg and was forced to miss the next two games. He returned for the series-clinching Game 4, replacing Kadri in the lineup, though it was not until Monday that he said he felt like he was nearing a full recovery.
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