Avalanche's Semyon Varlamov: Will serve as backup

Varlamov (upper body) has been cleared to return but will be the backup Tuesday against the Predators.

Analysis:

Given the fact that Varlamov has been outperformed so far by Calvin Pickard, it isn't all that surprising that the Avs opted to ease Varlamov back into the starting job. To be blunt, the 28-year-old's 5-9-0 record is not going to cut it for the organization and if coach Jared Bednar starts trending toward a more even split in net, fantasy owners will want to consider alternative options in goal for their lineups.