Morning skate notebook: Lindholm hopes for a new start

From the Pepsi Center, where the Avs host the Chicago Blackhawks tonight (7 p.m.):

Avs will have a new member in the lineup tonight:

That player is Anton Lindholm, the defenseman who has played parts of the last two seasons with Colorado. In 20 games with the Colorado Eagles of the AHL, Lindholm had no goals, five assists and a minus-4. While those numbers might not seem great, Jared Bednar said he has gotten very good reports of his play lately.

So, Lindholm will be in the lineup, with Patrik Nemeth as a D partner. Lindholm drove himself to the Avs from Loveland, in case you were wondering. Some players indeed have taken Ubers or Lyfts, though.

I asked Lindholm what he’s learned so far playing for the Eagles under coach Greg Cronin?

“I think I developed my game more. I kind of had some injuries earlier in the year, so I had to click the reset button for a while. But now, the last month or so, everything has been feeling really good,” Lindholm told BSN Denver.

Asked what part of his game has developed better, Lindholm said, “Puck skills, for sure. The offensive side of the rink, for sure. Just more poise, and maybe being more calm in my own mind.”

NOTEBOOK

• Another successful day of skating, or so it seemed, for injured defenseman Conor Timmins (concussion). I’m hearing that the chances are good he might actually start playing with the Eagles by next month, assuming things stay on a good course.
• How will Mikko Rantanen spend the three-day break, after the Avs’ game in Arizona Saturday? He’ll have a friend from Finland come, and he’ll hang out around town.
• Sheldon Dries was on the ice for the morning skate, but he’ll actually make the trip up I-25 North to play for the Eagles tonight.
• I talked with Philipp Grubauer, tonight’s starter in net for the Avs, and he said he isn’t looking at this game as some kind of confirmation that he’s the new No. 1 goalie or anything. “You try to get the same results, no matter what the game. The rest is out of my control,” he said.
• Semyon Varlamov, remember, will start tomorrow night in Arizona.
• I still haven’t gotten word who will start in goal for the Blackhawks. It could be Collin Delia, who has only two games of NHL experience. Those are the guys who always seem to give the Avs fits at the Pepsi Center, right?