Rusty Avalanche Fall In Overtime To Rangers; MacKinnon Extends Point Streak

The structure was there, but the legs started to fade as the night went on for the Colorado Avalanche.

After leading for most of the evening, Colorado gave up a late goal to the Rangers, and fell in overtime by a score of 2-1. The Avalanche got a late first period goal from Nathan MacKinnon, but struggled to generate many high-danger chances after that, and the Rangers looked to have more energy as the game went on. Colorado played sound defensive hockey, for the most part, but it’s hard to win in this league when you only score one goal.

Alexandar Georgiev played very well against his former team, stopping 27 of 29 shots, but admitted after the game he’d like to have the winning goal back. Still, he gave his team a chance to win with numerous big stops. MacKinnon was the lone goal scorer for Colorado, and extended his point streak to 14 games.

First Period

Rust was evident early for both teams, neither of which had played in over a week. They weren’t the only ones shaking off the rust, as the refs had a pretty awful first period.

On his first shift in an Avalanche uniform, Zach Parise registered two shots on goal and managed to draw a penalty, although Colorado didn’t exactly do much with it. The Rangers have a strong penalty kill, and on each of Colorado’s early powerplays, they generated some strong scoring chances of their own. Chris Kreider danced through Nathan MacKinnon for a good chance, but Georgiev was up to the task.

Halfway through the period, Mikko Rantanen and K’Andre Miller battled in front of the Rangers net. Rantanen cross-checked Miller, and Miller responded by dumping Rantanen to the ice. The refs called the play dead, but somehow Rantanen ended up with the extra two. On the Rangers powerplay, Georgiev made a big save on Trocheck in the slot. With a little over half the penalty killed, the refs messed up again.

Miles Wood, while backchecking, tripped over his teammate’s stick. The refs called a penalty on Lafreniere, but the highlights made it clear he did nothing wrong. On the Jumbotron, the replays played in the arena, and one of the refs saw it and went to talk to the other, but at this point, they couldn’t do anything about it. Just a rough period all around from the stripes.

MacKinnon, coming off another All-Star appearance, didn’t have the best period, as his passing was a bit off, but he more than made up for it late. With under two minutes left in the first, he danced through everyone in the neutral zone, creating a one-on-one opportunity with Schneider. He cut to the right and let a quick, low shot go, which snuck through Quick, giving the Avalanche the 1-0 lead. That goal silenced the crowd, only after MacKinnon’s moves in the neutral zone made them all audibly gasp.

Second Period

For as whistle-happy as the refs were in the first period, they put them away in the second. That doesn’t mean there weren’t plays worthy of an infraction, though. Josh Manson was blatantly tripped at one point, perhaps more clear cut than the calls in the first, but they let it slide.

The second period didn’t bring much in terms of action. New York’s best chance came after an extended shift in the offensive zone and some turnovers by the Avalanche. Blake Wheeler tried to take the puck to the net, but Georgiev, who won $100,000 by poke-checking Connor McDavid until the sun came down, reached out his stick and smacked the puck away before it became too dangerous.

At the other end, Quick had to make some stops, mainly on O’Connor off the rush, but the score stayed 1-0 heading into the third.

Third Period

To start the third period, it looked like the Avalanche didn’t quite have their legs after a long break. They spent a good majority of the period chasing in their own end, and didn’t get their first shot on net until almost the halfway mark of the period.

A little over 11 minutes into the third, the Rangers finally found the equalizer on a bullet of a shot from Artemi Panarin. The Russian winger managed to wiggle away from Cale Makar, who tried to anticipate a drop pass that didn’t happen. With a screen set up in front, Panarin sent a perfect shot off the post and in, tying the game up.

That goal seemed to spark the Avalanche just a little bit. The Colton line, which was probably Colorado’s best (again), created some good looks, as Miles Wood played another strong game, but Quick was tough to beat.

In the final minute, the Rangers created quite a few opportunities for themselves, and the Avalanche gave them a few easy ones, but Georgiev shut the door, allowing the game to get to overtime.

Overtime

On the opening shift of the extra period, it looked like Cale Makar was going to end it on a highlight reel goal. He flew by everyone, but couldn’t lift the puck over Quick’s pad. Makar felt he was hooked, but nothing was called. Actually, the refs didn’t call anything after the first.

It looked like the Avalanche were going to get a break, but a pass to Colton was just off. Quick…quickly passed it up the ice to Zibanejad, who dropped it off to Lafreniere. The young winger cut to the middle and beat Georgiev on the blocker side, giving the Rangers the 2-1 lead.

It’s a quick turnaround for the Avalanche, but they don’t have far to go. They’ll travel just up the street to New Jersey to take on the Devils Tuesday night. That game starts at 5 PM MST.