ST. PAUL, minn. — Joey Hishon was in Cleveland a couple of days ago, thinking he would finish out his season with the Lake Erie Monsters. Making the Avalanche roster would probably have to wait until training camp in the fall.

Wednesday afternoon in the visitors dressing room at Xcel Energy Center, Hishon wore an Avs sweater, answering questions about making his NHL debut Thursday in Game 4 of the playoffs against the Minnesota Wild.

“Joey’s dream was to play in the NHL one day. Here it is,” said Avs coach Patrick Roy, who will use Hishon as a fourth-line center and on the power play in Game 4. “He’s having a chance to do it. With our situation, why not?”

Hishon, the talented but oft-injured 2010 first-round draft pick of the Avs, will skate with Patrick Bordeleau and Brad Malone against the Wild. He played 50 games for Lake Erie this season, scoring 10 goals and 24 points. Roy is hoping he can give a boost to an Avs offense that was shut out in Game 3.

Hishon didn’t seem fazed by the challenge of making his NHL debut in a critical postseason game on enemy ice.

“The coaching staff down in Cleveland talks to you a lot and tries to keep you ready for any situation like this to happen,” Hishon said. “I’m just going to try and work as hard as I can and have fun with it and enjoy the experience.”

Hishon, a top scorer for the Owen Sound Attack of the Ontario Hockey League prior to being drafted by the Avs 17th overall in 2010, missed nearly two full years of any hockey activities following a cheap shot hit to the head from Brayden McNabb in a Memorial Cup game against Kootenay in 2011.

It wasn’t until Hishon used a machine developed by a Colorado Springs man named Kevin Maher, called the GyroStim, that Hishon’s concussion symptoms started to alleviate. The machine also was credited with returning Pittsburgh star Sidney Crosby back from concussion problems.

He has had some recurring symptoms following a couple of big hits with Lake Erie and had some other injuries. So, health and durability remain a concern with the 5-foot-10, 175-pound player.

“I just try to do what I can to stay healthy and take care of my body. The pros are a lot different than junior, that’s for sure. It’s a lot tougher on the body. Everybody’s bigger and faster, and you really need to stay on top of the maintenance stuff,” Hishon said. “So for for me, it’s been a very easy transition for me. I haven’t played a game yet, but the way they explain things is second to none and I couldn’t ask for anything better.”

Adrian Dater: , adater@denverpost.com or twitter.com/adater