The center missed eight games with a lower-body injury sustained against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Nov. 6. MacKinnon practiced Monday wearing a regular jersey for the first time since he was injured.
"He'll be playing tomorrow," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar told Altitude Sports Radio in Denver on Tuesday. "It will take a lot to keep him out. The reason we don't release it yesterday is because that's his big day of practice and that's where there's going to be contact, and something could realistically flare up today. I don't think that's going to happen. He's been feeling great. He had the day off and had the big day of practice yesterday, went through all different kinds of scenarios.
"He's done a really nice job of remaining on target and getting himself healthy, getting himself back ready to play."
The Avalanche did not practice Tuesday and will have a morning skate in Toronto on Wednesday.
Colorado was 7-1-0 without MacKinnon, who has scored 10 points (one goal, nine assists), in eight games this season. He was replaced by forward Mikko Rantanen on the top line with Gabriel Landeskog and Logan O'Connor.
"It will be very nice to have him back," Landeskog said Monday. "He's a top player in the League. It looks like he didn't miss a beat. It looks like he put in the work. He's been trying to come back in the last couple weeks, and he looks good. It'll be fun having him back, and it obviously will be a big boost for our team and especially heading into a tough road trip."
After visiting the Maple Leafs, the Avalanche play at the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, the Ottawa Senators on Saturday, the Philadelphia Flyers on Dec. 6, and the New York Rangers on Dec. 8.
Goalie Pavel Francouz (sprained ankle) will play for Colorado in the American Hockey League. Bednar said Monday that the Avalanche might carry three goalies to avoid putting Jonas Johansson on waivers, a situation that will be reevaluated after the road trip.
Johansson has been the back up to Darcy Kuemper. He is 2-1-1 with a 2.92 goals-against average and .911 save percentage in five games (three starts).
"There's work to be done there as far as figuring out how all this is all going to play out but I'm confident (general manager) Joe (Sakic) is going to make the right decisions for our team," Bednar said. "Essentially the goalies will iron this thing out and hopefully we can keep all the depth that we have here and continue to move forward, because we may need it as the future rolls around."
Francouz practiced Monday. He has not played since he was injured during a preseason game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 5 and did not play last season while recovering from hip surgery.
"It's been a long time since 'Frankie' has played," Bednar said. "We need him healthy, and we have to make sure he's good to go and can help us."
Forward Valeri Nichushkin (illness) and defenseman Ryan Murray (lower body) did not practice Monday. Bednar said Nichushkin's illness is not COVID-19 related. Murray, who was injured in a 6-2 win against the Nashville Predators on Saturday, is out indefinitely.
Forward Martin Kaut was activated from injured reserve and assigned to Colorado in the AHL. He missed nine games with an upper-body injury sustained against the Blue Jackets on Nov. 3.
NHL independent correspondent Rick Sadowski contributed to this report
