The Colorado Avalanche returned home still holding onto the last playoff spot to face off against last year’s Western Conference champion the Las Vegas Golden Knights.
Matt Nieto returned to the lineup and the Avalanche came out flying. The Avs jumped out to a 3-goal lead early with Matt Calvert, Nathan MacKinnon, and Tyson Barrie all scoring. Vegas crawled their way back to within a goal before Gabriel Bourque found the back of the net. The Golden Knights added one more goal, but Colorado held on to win 4-3.
What did we learn from the win?
1. The Avalanche found a way to hold off a late surge from Vegas. One thing this team has been known to do is slow down after going up big. They did that Wednesday night, but gathered themselves late in the game to hold off a comeback attempt. Philipp Grubauer played a vital role making 14 saves in the final period.
2. The return to twelve forwards and 6 defensemen proved to be a successful one. In Sunday’s overtime loss to Chicago, Colorado looked exhausted. Wednesday night was a different story. Everyone looked fresh. Adding the extra forward gave MacKinnon some deserved rest and allowed for Bourque to see a little more ice.
3. Matt Calvert continued his career season, edging closer to his career high in goals. With his goal Wednesday night, Calvert now has 25 points on the season. He has 11 goals in 2018-19, two away from tying his career high in that category. Calvert’s performance against the Golden Knights was a perfect example of what he brings to the team. While he might not rack up the points, he did lead all Avalanche forwards in penalty kill minutes. The Avs were a perfect 3-for-3 when short-handed.
4. Tyson Barrie continues to fill the injury void. With Gabe Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen out with injuries, Tyson Barrie has picked up the scoring slack. In the time Landeskog has been out, Barrie leads the team with 10 points. With his goal tonight, Barrie becomes the franchise leader in all three points categories for a defenseman — goals, assists, and points — moving ahead of Sandis Ozolinsh for sole possession of top goal scorer with 73.
5. Jared Bednar got his 100th win as the Colorado Avalanche head coach. In his three seasons with Colorado, Bednar is 100-115-26. He led Colorado to the playoffs last season after having the worst record in the NHL the prior season.
The Colorado Avalanche return to action Friday in another vital home game against the Arizona Coyotes. Arizona now trails Colorado for the final playoff spot by two points. Puck drop is set for 7:00 PM MST.
