Price for Flyers captain Claude Giroux just got steeper

With Gabe Landeskog’s injury, the Philadelphia Flyers’ bargaining power has increased in their dealings with the Colorado Avalanche.

The Avs announced Saturday that Landeskog, their captain and outstanding left winger, will have knee surgery Monday and will be sidelined indefinitely.

Colorado coach Jared Bednar said there was no timeline for Landeskog’s return, and that “hopefully” he would be available for the stretch run. “We’ll know more after the surgery.”

The trade deadline is March 21, and Colorado is among the many teams who have inquired about Giroux, a winger/center who is expected to waive his no-movement clause.

Colorado, Florida, Carolina, St. Louis, and Minnesota are among the teams reportedly interested in Giroux, who can become am unrestricted free agent in July.

What can the Flyers potentially get for Giroux? Russ Cohen, prospects expert, gives his views to Philadelphia Hockey Now here.

Landeskog, 29, has 30 goals and 59 points in 51 games.

Giroux, 34, has 17 goals and 41 points in 55 games. He has one goal, three points and a minus-4 rating over his last nine games, and Flyers interim coach Mike Yeo believes his captain is pressing because of all the trade talk.

‘Weighing on him’

“I think we can all see that it’s probably weighing on him,” Yeo said recently. “It’s hard to remember sometimes that they’re human beings. You look at G, and this is not your average player who has been with an organization for three or four years and might potentially get traded. We’re talking about (him) growing up in the organization and this town — and a guy who has really given a lot, so this is really a difficult time for him, no question.”

Giroux will play in his 999th career game, all with the Flyers, when they host the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday night. The Flyers then host Nashville in what would be Giroux’s 1,000th game on Thursday.

The Flyers are coming off Saturday’s 3-1 loss in Carolina.

The Avs, meanwhile, also announced that defenseman Sam Girard will miss at least a month with a lower-body injury.

Maybe the Flyers try to package Giroux and Justin Braun together in a deal?

Stay tuned.