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Wild one game from elimination after 5-2 loss to Avalanche in Game 4: Takeaways
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- Wild one game from elimination after 5-2 loss to Avalanche in Game 4: Takeaways
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The Minnesota Wild are one loss away from the end of their season. The Colorado Avalanche scored four times in the third period Monday night and left Grand Casino Arena with a 5-2 win in Game 4 of their Western Conference Second Round series.
Parker Kelly scored with 7:28 remaining to snap a 2-2 tie. Nathan MacKinnon and Brock Nelson added empty-net goals in the final minute to give the Avs a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 series. They can advance to the Western Conference Final with a win Wednesday night in Denver.
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Mackenzie Blackwood got his first start of the playoffs and made 19 saves for Colorado. He wasn't severely tested but kept the game tied at 1-1 early in the third period with a pair of terrific saves on Nico Sturm. Blackwood saw his first action of the series when he relieved Scott Wedgewood in the second period of Minnesota's 5-1 win in Game 3.
Nazem Kadri and Russ Colton also scored for Colorado, which hasn't gotten to the conference final since 2022, when the Avs won their second Stanley Cup championship.
Wild can't hold off Avs in third period, lose 5-2 in Game 4
Danila Yurov gave the Wild a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal midway through the first period. Sturm tied the game 2-2 at 9:15 of the third after Colton's goal at 6:56 put Colorado ahead for the first time.
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The Wild got a superb effort from rookie goaltender Jesper Wallstedt, who finished with 29 saves. The "Wall of St. Paul" gave his team a chance to win on a night when Minnesota was outshot 34-21, out-attempted 77-48 and outplayed for the vast majority of the game.
"The style of game we needed to play to win the game, we made the conscious choice not to play that way tonight," Minnesota coach John Hynes said. "So, we'll re-address that and then we'll get ready for Game 5."
Minnesota is 2-6 all-time after going down 3-1 in a series. Both of those comebacks were in 2003; one came when they lost three of the first four games to the Avs before winning the next three games and the series.
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Colorado dominated in almost every facet of the game in the first period — except on the scoreboard, the only one that matters.
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The Avs had a 10-4 advantage in shots on goal and attempted 22 shots to just six for Minnesota. The Avs had all five high-danger attempts at 5-on-5, according to Natural Stat Trick.
But they also gave the Wild the only power plays in the opening period — and paid the price.
Avs defenseman Josh Manson, making his first appearance of the series, drew a double minor at 7:07 for butt-ending Wild center Michael McCarron. It came while the two were down on the ice. The original call was a five-minute major but reduced after a length video review. McCarron made it clear between periods that he wasn't happy.
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"Josh is a dirty player," he told ESPN after the opening period. "He's always been. Surprised he got away with only a four-minute (penalty). I'm glad he's still in the game."
The Wild made Colorado pay for the needless penalty at 9:46. Faber teed up a straightaway slap shot that Yurov deflected past Blackwood for his first career playoff goal and a 1-0 lead.
The Avalanche dominated the rest of the period, holding Minnesota without a shot on goal in the final 6:51. They kept the pressure on Wallstedt, but the Wild skated off with a one-goal lead despite being dominated.
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They weren't as lucky in the second period. Colorado dominated play through the first 12 minutes and tying the game 1-1 at 6:08 after Minnesota took a needless penalty of its own.
The Wild killed off Zach Bogosian's interference penalty at 2:42. But Colorado tied the game at 6:08 — seven seconds after Yakov Trenin was called for closing his hand on the puck. Trenin gloved an airborne puck and held on to it too long.
Martin Necas controlled the puck after the draw and got it to Kadri in the high slot for a blast that Wallstedt stopped. But the rebound came back to Kadri in the slot; he banged it into the net to tie the game.
Colorado continued to dominate for the next few minutes. The Avs had a 10-0 edge in shots before Trenin tested Blackwood at 12:21 with the Wild on a power play.
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Wallstedt made a terrific stop in close on Gabriel Landeskog with 6:02. But that was the Avs' last shot of the period, as Minnesota took control of the play and had the final seven shots. Blackwood preserved the tie in the final minute by robbing Kirill Kaprizov, who was alone after beating the defense.
Colton scored his first goal of the playoffs off a beautiful backdoor feed from Nicolas Roy to put Colorado ahead for the first time in the game. But a brilliant play by Quinn Hughes set up Sturm for the tying goal. Hughes picked up the puck along the left boards, spun back to the high slot and threaded a perfect backhand pass to Sturm. The son of Boston Bruins coach Marco Sturm scored from the bottom of the left circle to make it 2-2.
However, a takeaway by Colorado's Jack Drury led to the game-winner. Drury forced a turnover and found Kelly in the high slot for a quick release that Wallstedt never saw.
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Minnesota got just two shots on Blackwood before the empty-netters by MacKinnon and Nelson.
Key Takeaways after COL-MIN Game 4
Wasting Wallstedt
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Minnesota's rookie goaltender did everything but stand on his head to keep his team in the game, though in the end it wasn't enough.
He was the only reason the Wild were even at 1-1 going into the third period. Colorado outshot Minnesota 20-4 through the game's first 32 minutes but managed just one goal. He robbed Colton shortly before the Colorado forward tied the game and gave them a chance to win despite allowing 39 scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.
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There were several reasons the Wild lost. Wallstedt wasn't one of them.
Does Quinn Hughes ever get tired?
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The Wild gave up a lot to get Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks in December, and he's showing why in this year's playoffs. His assist on Sturm's goal was his 14th point, tying him for second in the League with Kaprizov behind only Mitch Marner of the Vegas Golden Knights.
He's also tied for second with 10 assists and for third in plus-minus at plus-9.
More impressive is that he's almost literally playing every other shift. Hughes led all players on both teams by playing 34:13 on Wednesday after playing more than 28 minutes in each of the first three games. His average ice time of 30:59 is the most among any player on the eight teams that reached the second round.
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Wild still struggling on penalty kill
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Minnesota continued one streak that coach John Hynes isn't happy about. His team allowed a power-play for the 10th consecutive game. That includes all six against the Dallas Stars in the first round as well as each of the four games in this series.
Minnesota is last on the penalty kill among the eight teams to reach the second round at 59.5 percent, allowing 15 goals on 37 opposition power plays. That includes Colorado's 5-for-12 showing in the first four games.
Stat shots
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The Wild had been 4-0 this spring when scoring first.
Teams leading 3-1 in a best-of-7 series are 328-32 (.911) all-time. Teams that began those series at home are 212-17 (.926).
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The Avs are 14-2 when leading a series 3-1, including 10-2 when starting at home. They've won seven in a row.
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