Avalanche’s Gabriel Landeskog wins Masterton and Messier awards following injury battles

Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog has become the first player in NHL history to win both the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy and the Mark Messier Leadership Award in the same season. For Avalanche fans who watched his long three-year journey back to the ice, the Masterton award feels long overdue.

The road back for the captain was grueling. After leading the Avalanche to a Stanley Cup victory in 2022, Landeskog would miss three full regular seasons due to a knee injury sustained in 2020-21. In May 2023, he underwent cartilage replacement surgery. To make the odds seem even more slim, the surgery had never been performed on a hockey player, meaning there was no clear road map for his recovery. His 1,032-day regular-season absence ended when he played two games with the Avalanche’s AHL affiliate, the Colorado Eagles.

His regular-season comeback occurred during the 2025-26 season. In 60 regular-season games, Landeskog posted 35 points. And with their captain back in the lineup, Colorado would post a 45-7-8 record and eventually be awarded the President’s Trophy. He was also a big piece of the Avalanche’s playoff run, with 11 points in 13 games.

Gabriel Landeskog was certainly not expecting a second award to appear when he sat down for this interview!

Watch as Landeskog's family surprises him with the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for the way he exemplified perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.… pic.twitter.com/AsaxY7hpgc

— NHL (@NHL) June 9, 2026

One of the biggest reasons why Landeskog was able to power through his rehab was his wife, Melissa, and their children.

“It would have been so easy for you to just quit, to hang up the skates and just be done, but you didn’t,” Landeskog’s wife shared in a tribute video to her husband. “The mental toughness it took for you to keep going is something that I will admire about you for the rest of my life. I’m so proud of you, and watching you come back has been one of the greatest joys for me and our kids.”

Landeskog is the first player in Avalanche and Quebec Nordiques franchise history to win either award.

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