The Colorado Avalanche have finalized their 2011 Opening Night roster, as rookie defenseman Stefan Elliott has been reassigned to the AHL Lake Erie Monsters.
Elliott opened eyes with his excellent camp and performances in preseason games, but the clulb has determined that he will be better served with some experience and regular playing time in the AHL. If there is a major injury to one of the Avalanche's defensemen, Elliott will be on the short list of players to recall. Colorado did something similar last season with defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk, as he spent the first 11 games of the regular season in the AHL.
Kyle Cumiskey (groin), Brandon Yip (arm), and Mark Olver (head) have all been placed on the Injured Reserve list to start the season. Defenseman Jan Hejda was initially expected to miss the first two weeks of the regular season with a knee injury, but his recovery has been much faster than expected.
Here is the official roster for Opening Night 2011:
Goalies:
Semyon Varlamov
Jean-Sebastien Giguere
Forwards:
Paul Stastny
Matt Duchene
Ryan O’Reilly
Jay McClement
David Jones
Chuck Kobasew
Milan Hejduk
Peter Mueller
Gabriel Landeskog
Daniel Winnik
Joakim Lindstrom
Kevin Porter
Cody McLeod
T.J. Galiardi
Defensemen:
Erik Johnson
Jan Hejda
Kyle Quincey
Ryan O’Byrne
Shane O’Brien
Matt Hunwick
Ryan Wilson
As expected, second overall selection Landeskog has made the Opening Night roster and will likely slot in at left wing on O'Reilly's third line.