Avalanche activate veteran defenseman Josh Manson

The Colorado Avalanche activated defenseman Josh Manson from injured reserve Wednesday, per CapFriendly.

Manson returns after missing over two months and 31 games with a lower-body injury. The move couldn’t come at a better time, as Colorado was down to no lineup-regular right-shot defenders after placing Erik Johnson on injured reserve earlier this week.

A high-end shutdown defenseman, Manson excelled in last year’s Stanley Cup-winning playoff run after a trade deadline move from the Anaheim Ducks. He made a sizable offensive impact on top of his normally steady defensive play, recording eight points in 20 games.

Nearing his 500th NHL game after a largely injury-plagued career, Manson will return to a second-pairing role alongside youngster Bowen Byram. Before going down with the injury, Manson had two goals, four assists and six points in 21 games while averaging 16:57 per game.

Manson, 31, is in the first season of a four-year, $18M extension signed with Colorado last offseason. He’s slated to make his first appearance of the 2023 calendar year Wednesday night in Minnesota.