Avalanche prospect to make NHL debut vs. Bruins

Avalanche center prospect Matthew Stienburg will make his NHL debut Wednesday against the Bruins after the team announced he’d been recalled from AHL Colorado. Forwards Ivan Ivan and Nikolai Kovalenko were also brought back up to give the Avs 12 healthy forwards for Wednesday’s game after being papered down earlier in the week. Veteran Chris Wagner, who was sent down along with Ivan and Kovalenko, remains in the AHL.

Colorado’s 23-man roster is full after the moves. They had 10 forwards on the active roster, but one of them, Jonathan Drouin, remains day-to-day with an upper-body injury and can be placed on IR if they need an additional roster spot.

Stienburg, 24, is expected to center Ivan and Joel Kiviranta to comprise Colorado’s fourth line in his NHL debut, filling in for the role that Wagner held in their 6-2 loss to the Islanders on Monday. The 2019 third-round pick is off to a strong start in the AHL with the Eagles, scoring a goal and adding an assist through his first two games.

Drafted out of the Canadian high school circuit, Stienburg played his college hockey at Cornell from 2019 to 2023. There, the 6-foot-1 pivot had 20 goals and 46 points in 73 games and was named to the ECAC’s Second All-Star Team in 2021-22, when he broke out for 29 points in only 28 contests. Injuries and COVID slashed Stienburg’s availability throughout school, costing him his entire sophomore season and limiting him to seven points in 18 games during his senior year. He’s in the final year of his two-year entry-level contract that he signed in August 2023.

Last season was Stienburg’s first as a full-time professional. He made 54 appearances for the Eagles but wasn’t a factor offensively, with just five goals and eight assists for 13 points with 63 PIMs and a +2 rating. In a minimal sample size this year, he looks more comfortable with the pro game and will now get at least a brief look to see how his game grades out against NHL competition.