Prospects Face Off in 3-on-3 Game at Development Camp

FORT COLLINS, Colo.--The Colorado Avalanche wrapped up the final day of on-ice work at its 2018 development camp with a 3-on-3 game on Sunday evening.
The highly-anticipated contest for the Avs' prospects and camp invitees took place in front of a capacity crowd at the Edora Pool and Ice Center (EPIC), roughly 12 miles north from the Budweiser Events Center--the home of the Colorado Eagles, the team that some of the players might play for next season in the American Hockey League. In the game, Team White never trailed and defeated Team Burgundy 9-5.

The format of the outing was much like the 3-on-3 overtime the NHL uses during the regular season, but with a few differences. There was a running clock for three, 15-minute periods, and the evening wrapped up with a just-for-fun shootout to entertain the fans in attendance.
Development camp invite Logan O'Connor finished with three goals while White teammate Josh Dickinson also had three points with a tally and two assists. O'Connor is at his first NHL camp and is playing locally at the University of Denver, where he will be the team captain for his senior season.
Dickinson is getting ready for his first professional campaign after playing for Clarkson University last year and signing an entry-level contract with Colorado in April. He helped setup O'Connor's second tally midway through the first period and Martin Kaut's first marker with 30 seconds left in the middle period.
"There was lots of open ice out there, and the fans were great for us the whole game. The energy in the building really helped," O'Connor said. "All the guys were excited, sort of looking forward to it all week. It was a cherry on top to go out there and have a little fun."
Fans got their first look at Kaut, the 16th overall pick in the 2018 draft, in a full Avalanche uniform, and the Czech didn't disappoint. He created opportunities for him and his teammates throughout the scrimmage and scored his second goal of the outing nearly four minutes into the third period when he buried a shot five-hole while on a breakaway.

Ty Lewis and Cam Morrison also scored for Team White, while Matthew Boucher recorded an empty-net goal with 33 seconds remaining as the Burgundy squad was trying to close a four-goal deficit.
"It was a blast out there," said Morrison, who is heading into his junior season at the University of Notre Dame. "We were lucky enough to get the win out there. I think both teams played really well. It was a competitive, but fun atmosphere."
Travis Barron led Team Burgundy on the scoresheet by recording two goals and an assist, while Robbie Holmes, Sampo Ranta and Denis Smirnov also scored. Ranta, the 78th overall pick of Colorado in last week's draft, also had an assist.
As expected, the start of the contest had a quick pace to it with both teams trading chances in the first period. While the Burgundy squad was getting more odd-man rushes, the White team created more shots on goal and were capitalizing on them. Team White outshot Burgundy 15-6 in the first frame and led 4-1 after 15 minutes of play.
"Everybody here are extremely skilled hockey players. It makes the game a lot easier," Lewis said. "Guys here are all able to read and react and play with pace. It's fun to play hockey like that. It's been a while since I played a game, so it's nice to get back into things."
Team Burgundy had a better second period and had a 16-8 edge in shots, but the play began to slow down as tired legs started to prevail and a more defensive, possession game developed.
By the time the third period got underway, Burgundy faced a 6-2 deficit and it was too much for the squad to come back from. Team Burgundy did finish with a 35-34 advantage in the shot count by the time the final buzzer sounded.
"The boys got a little tired here on the fifth day, but I thought for the most part guys played pretty hard and gave it all they had," Lewis said.

All four goaltenders saw time in the crease, with each playing half of the contest. They switched out midway through the second period.
Pavel Francouz started for Team White, while fellow Czech Petr Kvaca was in net for Burgundy to begin the outing. Francouz stopped 13-of-15 shots, while Kvaca made 14 saves on 19 shots. Adam Werner played the second half of the contest for Burgundy and made 12-of-15 saves, and Justus Annunen stopped 17-of-20 shots for Team White.
The Avs finished the night with a shootout, which Team White also won, 2-1, after seven rounds.
The prospects will stay in Northern Colorado for the last day of development camp on Monday. They have off-ice team activities scheduled.

View: Game Rosters

Final: White - 9, Burgundy - 5

Scoring

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | Total | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Burgundy | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | | White | 4 | 2 | 3 | 9 |

Shots on Goal

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | Total | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Burgundy | 6 | 15 | 14 | 35 | | White | 15 | 9 | 10 | 34 |

Scoring Summary

First Period
3:11 White O'Connor (1) - Anderson (1) [B 0, W 1]
7:14 White O'Connor (2) - Dickinson (1) [B 0, W 2]
9:30 Burgundy Barron (1) - Ranta (1) [B 1, W 2]
10:00 White Lewis (1) [B 1, W 3]
12:40 White Dickinson (1) [B 1, W 4]
Second Period
1:14 Burgundy Barron (2) [B 2, W 4]
1:43 White O'Connor (3) [B 2, W 5]
14:30 White Kaut (1) - Dickinson (2) [B 2, W 6]
Third Period
2:50 Burgundy Smirnov (1) [B 3, W 6]
2:42 White Morrison (1) [B 3, W 7]
3:59 White Kaut (2) [B 3, W 8]
10:27 Burgundy Ranta (1) - Barron (1) [B 4, W 8]
12:55 Holmes (1) [B 5, W 8]
14:27 Boucher (1) (EN) [B 5, W 9]
\ (3) 15-minute periods*

Goaltenders

Burgundy
61 Petr Kvaca: 14 saves, 19 shots against
74 Adam Werner: 12 saves, 15 shots against
White
39 Pavel Francouz: 13 saves, 15 shots against
60 Justus Annunen: 17 saves, 20 shots against