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Necas' Two Goals, Blackwood's 24 Saves Lift Avalanche Past Stars 3-2
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- Necas' Two Goals, Blackwood's 24 Saves Lift Avalanche Past Stars 3-2
Martin Necas scored twice and Mackenzie Blackwood turned aside 24 shots as the Colorado Avalanche held off a late push from the Dallas Stars to secure a 3-2 victory at American Airlines Center.
Artturi Lehkonen scored for the fourth time in six games, while Nathan MacKinnon recorded two assists and dropped the gloves with Roope Hintz in a heated second-period fight.
Tyler Seguin led Dallas with a two-point performance, but Jake Oettinger's 22 saves weren't enough to prevent Colorado from taking Game 1. The teams will meet again Wednesday night at Ball Arena.
The Avalanche were without the services of superstar defenseman Cale Makar, who stayed back in Denver after his wife, Tracy, went into labor as she's expected to give birth to twins at any moment.
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First Period
Blackwood faced his first test just before the two-minute mark, when Oskar Bäck wristed a shot from the slot that deflected off the goaltender's glove.
Cale Makar did not play tonight.
At 7:23, Colin Blackwell charged toward the net, but Colorado's netminder turned him away to maintain a solid start. Near the halfway point, Dallas captain Jamie Benn looked to set up Jason Robertson for a deflection in front before unleashing a slap shot from the point. Blackwood absorbed it off his chest protector to keep the Stars off the board.
Colorado struck first with 8:28 remaining. Josh Manson's point shot deflected off MacKinnon's skate, and Lehkonen pounced on the rebound, lifting a backhand past Oettinger to give the Avalanche a 1-0 lead. It was Lehkonen's fourth goal in six games.
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Sam Malinski and Blackwell were sent to the penalty box for roughing after a post-whistle scrum in front of the net. Blackwell took exception to an apparent slash from Malinski as he tried to get a shot off on Blackwood, sparking an altercation that led to four-on-four play.
At the other end, Oettinger came up with a key save when Devon Toews broke free for a scoring opportunity, preventing Colorado from extending its lead.
Blackwood continued to stand tall, stopping a wrist shot from Stars forward Arttu Hyry as he drove through the offensive zone before denying him again on the rebound.
Late in the period, Fedor Svechkov dropped the gloves with Radek Faksa after Jaden Schwartz took a hit he never saw coming. Svechkov received an additional two-minute instigator penalty and a 10-minute misconduct, giving Dallas a late power play.
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The Stars capitalized with 53.8 seconds remaining. Seguin, who missed most of last season with a torn ACL, found space in the low slot, took a pass and fired a shot that deflected off Lehkonen and into the net. The power-play goal tied the game at 1-1 heading into the first intermission.
Second Period
Necas made up for what appeared to be a costly turnover with a dazzling goal moments later. After losing control of the puck in the offensive zone, he got a second chance when MacKinnon recovered it, stickhandled through traffic and fed him for a one-timer that restored Colorado's lead at 2-1.
At 6:47, MacKinnon and Hintz dropped the gloves after the Avalanche star cross-checked the Dallas forward in the back. The two had a history dating to last season, when MacKinnon threw Hintz to the ice, resulting in a lower-body injury.
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This time, Hintz landed a trio of punches, one of which broke MacKinnon's visor and reopened a cut on his nose. MacKinnon headed to the locker room for repairs, and both players received five-minute majors for fighting.
MacKinnon isn't known for dropping the gloves, but this marked his second fight in six games. At this rate, a second Lady Byng Memorial Trophy—awarded for sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct—may be out of the question.
The physical play continued as Kyle Capobianco was called for cross-checking Sam Malinski, followed by a tripping penalty to Faksa for taking down MacKinnon. As MacKinnon fell, Miro Heiskanen's stick caught him in the mouth, causing further bleeding.
The penalties gave Colorado 26 seconds of five-on-three play, and Necas made Dallas pay with a beautiful backdoor finish for his second goal of the night, extending the lead to 3-1.
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Colorado had 1:43 remaining on the power play after the goal. Moments before the advantage expired, Malinski turned the puck over in his own zone, sending Sam Steel in alone on Blackwood. The Avalanche netminder came up with a spectacular glove save, robbing Steel of a golden scoring chance with a stop worthy of ESPN's Top 10 plays.
Through 40 minutes, Colorado held a 3-1 lead and a 23-19 edge in shots on goal.
Third Period
Hintz cut the deficit to 3-2 at the 3:23 mark, one-timing a pass from Seguin in the low slot. Seguin found him from behind the net after Toews lost track of his assignment, breathing new life into the Stars and setting up a tense finish.
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Dallas defenseman Thomas Harley went to the box for holding T.J. Hughes, giving Colorado a power-play opportunity to restore its two-goal cushion. The Avalanche couldn't convert, leaving the door open for the Stars to keep pressing.
With about six minutes remaining in regulation, Colorado defenseman Noah Juulsen blocked a shot from Steel in front of the net and appeared to take it in a sensitive area. He was slow to get back to his feet as Dallas continued to apply pressure down the stretch.
The Stars pulled Oettinger late in an attempt to find the equalizer, but Colorado held firm to secure the 3-2 win. Blackwood finished with 24 saves, while Oettinger stopped 22 shots in the loss.
Necas' two-goal performance and MacKinnon's pair of assists helped power the Avalanche, while Seguin finished with two points for Dallas and Hintz contributed a goal amid the second-period fireworks.
The series continues Wednesday night at Ball Arena, where the Stars will look to even things up in Round 2.
Puck drop is at 6:30 p.m.
