Recap: The Avs mount a comeback of their own, besting the Hawks in a shootout

The Avs win 3-2 on a SO tally from Artturi Lehknonen!

The Colorado Avalanche visited the windy city to face the Blackhawks for the fourth time this season. Surprisingly, the Blackhawks are 2-1 against the boys in burgundy and blue this season. The game started slow and favored the Blackhawks, but the Avalanche did what they had to do in the end and will head to Columbus with 2 points.

First Period

The Avalanche appeared to get out on the right foot early in the first period when Sam Malinksi finished a feed from Val Nichushkin. Unfortunately, the goal was called back for being offside—tough luck for Malinski, who has had two goals taken off the board due to the offside review.

The Avalanche earned a powerplay later in the period, but what should have proven an advantage for Colorado turned into a short-handed tally for the Blackhawks. Mikheyev scored over the glove of Wedewood for his 18th goal of the season, and it was 1-0 Chicago.

Second Period

The Avalanche didn’t get off to a great start in the second, but thankfully, Scott Wedgewood made save after save to keep the score at 1-0. Colorado earned another powerplay but was unsuccessful and gave up yet another short-handed breakaway. Wedgewood saved the day.

Connor Murphy would add to the damage and doubt with the first goal of the second period. Avs couldn’t seem to get it out of their own end, and before long, tired legs led to a one-timer look for Murphy, and he cashed in off the far post and in. Chicago took a 2-0 lead.

Just after the Avs could not cash in on their third powerplay chance of the evening, the Avalanche informed us that Jonathan Drouin had sustained a lower-body injury and would not return. We must keep an eye on that as the regular season ends. The second period would end with a penalty kill for the Avalanche after Nichushkin went off for tripping at 17:47.

Third Period

The Avalanche got their fourth powerplay chance of the night but yet again couldn’t capitalize, and the frustration started to show on the bench. A combination of an excellent performance from Spencer Knight and missed opportunities for the Avalanche had things looking bleak, that is, until Cale Makar got Colorado on the board on a beautiful feed from Nathan MacKinnon. This goal would mark the beginning of Colorado’s comeback. Cale Makar is so good.

The Avalanche couldn’t stay out of the box in the second half of the final frame but did have a few chances with Scott Wedgewood off and the extra attacker on. A MacKinnon wrister was among Colorado’s best chances until a point blast went off Martin Necas (who looked hurt earlier in the period) and into the net with 9.8 seconds left in regulation.

Shootout

In the end, Nathan MacKinnon and Artturi Lehkonen buried their shootout opportunities. Scott Wedgewood made two saves, giving the Avalanche a late-night victory in a game they likely had no business winning.

Takeaways

Watching this Avalanche team play down to their opponent this late in the season is so hard. I’m here for the human nature discussion regarding not having any playoff position to play for, but these guys are still professional hockey players. That said, they started slow and finished strong while showing plenty of emotion and want-to late in the game.

I know the Avalanche were notoriously bad in 2022 before going on to win a cup, but I still don’t like to see them form bad habits and drop three straight. Thankfully that didn’t happen tonight. Start slow like this in the playoffs, and you will quickly be staring at elimination. For now, I’ll live by this motto: Do not overreact.

As previously mentioned, Marty Necas went down in the third period and wrenched his neck in a way that could not feel good. I wonder if he takes the night off tomorrow as the second of a back-to-back. Imagine hearing “a pop,” as Marty told the AltitudeTV crew, and coming back to score the game-tying goal with less than ten seconds to go.

It was an interesting little tidbit before puck-drop. Erik Johnson told Paul Bizzonette and the TNT crew about his campaigning efforts, which landed him in Colorado at the deadline.

Upcoming

The Avs will continue their road trip and head to Columbus for a 5:30 p.m. contest against the Blue Jackets tomorrow. Not sure how that schedule worked out, but here we are! Let’s see what the decision in the net tells us about the health of MacKenzie Blackwood.

Mile High Hockey’s 3 Stars:

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ – Spencer Knight

⭐ ⭐ – Nathan MacKinnon

⭐ – Cale Makar