Avalanche's Pavel Francouz: Not expected for opener

Colorado head coach Jared Bednar confirmed Monday that Francouz (groin) is not expected to be ready for the regular season, Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now reports.

Francouz was recently added to injured reserve, so this development should not come as a surprise. Justus Annunen is expected to start one of the final two preseason games to show he can handle the backup duties to primary goalie Alexandar Georgiev.