If you’ve been following CHN, this is hardly a surprise, but it appears we have some confirmation – Artturi Lehkonen will not be a full participant for the Colorado Avalanche when training camp opens in less than a week.

It sounds like Nathan MacKinnon spilled the beans at the NHL Media Tour this week, and the Avalanche confirmed it to be true.

Now the question will be whether or not Lehkonen will be ready for the opener against the Golden Knights. The organization says there’s no clear timeline for his return. I’ve been following his progress at Family Sports over the last few weeks, and there’s been steady improvement. He’s gone from barely shooting the puck to putting some real zip on his shots. There’s a lot more that goes into rehabbing a shoulder injury, but it’s a good sign that things are progressing in the right direction.

Lehkonen needed shoulder surgery this off-season and the organization had previously said that they’d know more by Labor Day. While he’s skating and improving, there’s zero reason to rush a guy this important so early in the season. Let him get healthy for when the games really matter, especially given how Lehkonen plays the game.

Lehkonen’s absence to start camp will give more opportunity to some younger players to step up in the preseason. Expect guys like Calum Ritchie, Nikolai Kovalenko, and Jere Innala, just to name a few, to get some good looks. Ritchie is currently in LA for the Rookie Faceoff, while the other two have been skating with veterans for a while now.

The Avalanche hit the ice on Sept. 19, with media day taking place the day before.