The Wild started the second period quickly with a goal less than a minute in for the only goal of that frame.
The Wild continued the scoring, netting one midway through the third period to tie the game.
The third period ended with back-and-forth scoring for each team. Nathan MacKinnon took the lead with a referee confirmed goal but the Wild tied the game, again, less than a minute later.
The game was pushed to a shootout, the deciding goal came from Mikko Rantanen.
The Avalanche and Wild will meet two more times this season, both in Minnesota.
THE GOALS
1st Period
15:57 COL (0-1) - PPG Nathan MacKinnon took a slap shot from the top of the zone that rebounded off the back boards and slid to Mikko Rantanen on the right side of the net, Rantanen gave the puck a tap and secured the goal.
17:39 COL (0-2) - Samuel Girard, from the left circle, handed the puck off to Alex Newhook in the slot. Newhook had just enough room to turn, fire a shot and land the puck home.
2nd Period
0:33 MIN (1-2) - Kevin Fiala brought the puck from zone to zone, kept control and landed a backhanded shot as he skated past the net.
3rd Period
6:46 MIN (2-2) - Mats Zuccarello took the puck to the slot and passed it to Kirill Kaprizov waiting in the right circle. Kaprizov got the puck home from a shot off one knee.
16:28 COL (2-3) - Nathan MacKinnon brought the puck from zone to zone and with a couple cross ice passes he gave a short shot on net glove side. The puck became stuck under Kaapo Kahkonen as he slid into the net. Referees confirmed the goal.
17:09 MIN (3-3) - Kirill Kaprizov had the puck right in front of the net with enough room to bat it in.
Overtime
No Scoring
Shootout
MIN Mats Zuccarello - No Goal
COL Nathan MacKinnon - No Goal
MIN Kevin Fiala - No Goal
COL Mikko Rantanen - GOAL
MIN Kirill Kaprizov - No Goal
Final: Avalanche 4, Wild 3 (SO)
3 STARS
POWER PLAYS
Colorado: 1/4
Minnesota: 0/2
GOALTENDING BATTLE
Colorado: Darcy Kuemper and Pavel Francouz combined to allow 3 goals on 40 shots.
Minnesota: Kaapo Kahkonen allowed 3 goals on 38 shots.
STAT OF THE NIGHT
Nathan MacKinnon earned his 600th career point with the goal in the third period. MacKinnon is now the seventh player in franchise history and fourth in Avalanche history to reach 600 points.
NOTEBOOK
Mikko Rantanen, with his one goal tonight, tallied 20 goals so far this season, a mark he has reached for the fifth time in his career. The Colorado Avalanche extended its franchise best home winning streak to 14 games. The Colorado Avalanche are 2-0 in afternoon contests this season and hold a 15-3-2 record in home afternoon contests since the start of the 2017-2018 season. Today's game is the eighth time the Avalanche have held a home game on MLK day, holding a 6-1-1 record.
On this day in Avalanche history (Jan 17. 2006), Milan Hejduk became the first player to score 100 goals at Pepsi Center as the Avalanche beat the Maple Leafs 5-3.
ROSTER REPORT
Valeri Nichushkin has entered NHL's COVID protocol. Kiefer Sherwood and Mikhail Maltsev have been recalled from the American Hockey League affiliate, the Colorado Eagles.
INJURY UPDATE
Ryan Murray left the game on Jan. 14 with an upper-body injury. Darren Helm is considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Jacob MacDonald remains out with an upper-body injury he sustained on Dec. 12. Stefan Matteau is expected to be out for a few more weeks while he rehabs a lower-body injury from October 2021.
UP NEXT
The Colorado Avalanche travel to California for a two-game back-to-back road trip, starting in Anaheim against the Ducks on Jan. 19.
LINE COMBINATIONS
Based on the start of the game
Forwards
92 Landeskog - 29 MacKinnon - 96 Rantanen
95 Burakovsky - 91 Kadri - 25 O'Connor
16 Aube-Kubel - 18 Newhook - 37 Compher
17 Jost - 11 Maltsev - 44 Sherwood
Defensemen
7 Toews - 8 Makar
3 J. Johnson - 49 Girard
56 MacDermid - 6 E. Johnson
Goaltenders
35 Kuemper
39 Francouz
