Avalanche's Sam Girard OUT for Game 2

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – We just got some bad Avalanche medical news here at Bridgestone Arena. After saying Friday that there were no injuries from Game 1, the Avs announced right before Game 2 here that young defenseman Sam Girard will miss the game with an upper-body injury.

Duncan Siemens took warmup here, and presumably will take his place in the lineup, though that will be made official shortly.

It’s a big blow for an Avs team that was already a heavy underdog with Girard in the lineup. Now the Avs have lost a 20-22-minute puck-moving defenseman who makes good decisions coming out of his zone.

I’ll try to learn more the extent of this injury, but it was just announced, so details are sparse. The Avs probably won’t say anything more about it until after the game.

UPDATE: Jared Bednar said Girard is day-to-day with the injury, which remains unspecified. Bednar said the loss of Girard is a “big blow” to the team, but that it must soldier on.