Avalanche's Valeri Nichushkin suspended at least six months - ESPN

DENVER — Colorado Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin has been placed in Stage 3 of the NHL/NHL Players' Association player assistance program, the league said Monday, just hours before the team's playoff game against the Dallas Stars.

Nichushkin, under the terms of the player assistance program, will be suspended without pay for a minimum of six months. He'll then be eligible to apply for reinstatement, according to a release issued by the NHL and NHLPA.

No further information about why Nichushkin, who was on the ice with the team at morning skate, was admitted into the program was provided.

With Nichushkin out, Colorado, trailing 2-1 in the series to Dallas, turned to forward Jonathan Drouin, who returned to the lineup following a lengthy absence. Drouin had missed all of Colorado's postseason games before Monday, after he sustained a lower-body injury in the regular-season finale on April 18.

And then, after all of that, the Avalanche struggled from the outset of Game 4, as Wyatt Johnston scored twice and the Stars cruised to a 5-1 win. Dallas has the opportunity to close out Colorado in Game 5 on Wednesday at home.

A league source told ESPN that the player assistance program has four stages. Stage 1 is the first in-patient treatment for which there is no penalty. Under Stage 2, which follows a violation of the Stage 1 treatment plan, a player can be suspended without pay during the active phase of treatment and then become eligible for reinstatement.

Stage 3, which follows a violation of the Stage 2 treatment plan, carries a suspension without pay for at least six months, at which point a player can become eligible for reinstatement. Stage 4, after a violation of the Stage 3 treatment plan, carries a suspension of at