Valeri Nichushkin has put the Avalanche in a very delicate situation. He has been suspended by the NHL and placed in the player assistance program. Just before the start of the 4th game against the Stars, the star forward had to leave his team and will be suspended for a minimum of 6 months. The Avalanche couldn't keep up in this 4th match and lost 5-1 to the Stars. Clearly, Nathan MacKinnon's squad was affected by this event. Veteran defenseman Jack Johnson didn't mince words in describing his recently suspended teammate: He made his decisions. That's all I'm going to say about it. He made his decisions. - Jack Johnson. Nichushkin's nameplate has already been replaced in the Avs' locker room. This likely summarizes the mindset of the Avalanche players who must focus on this showdown against the Stars. <div align='center'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/cmasisak22/status/1790239301013221873'> </a></blockquote></div>
