Colorado Avalanche (1-0, C3) @ Dallas Stars (0-1, C2)
7:30 p.m. MT | American Airlines Center | Watch: Altitude2, Altitude+, ESPN | Listen: Altitude Sports Radio (92.5 FM)
After a win in Game One, the Avalanche remain on the road to face the Dallas Stars in Game Two of the First Round.
Game One: COL 5, DAL 1
Won Game One
Nathan MacKinnon scored his 49th and 50th career playoff goals the Avalanche defeated the Stars in Game One of the First Round at American Airlines Center on Saturday. In his Stanley Cup Playoff debut, Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 23 of the 24 shots he faced for Colorado. Along with MacKinnon’s goals, Artturi Lehkonen, Devon Toews and Charlie Coyle each scored their first tallies of this year's playoffs. With this victory, Jared Bednar became the franchise’s all-time leader in playoff wins by a head coach with 50.
Lehkonen opened the scoring at 9:30 of the second period when the rebound created by his right-circle shot deflected into the net. MacKinnon doubled Colorado’s lead on the power play at 16:38 of the second period with a left-circle wrist shot that was a knuckle puck. At 6:45 of the third period, Roope Hintz put the Stars on the board with a power-play goal via a deflection. Toews regained Colorado’s two-goal lead at 12:56 of the third period with a redirect from the left doorstep set up by Josh Manson’s feed. With his empty-net tally at 16:52 of the third, MacKinnon gave the Avs a 4-1 lead and became the third player in franchise history to reach 50 playoff goals. Coyle put the Avalanche up 5-1 at 17:03 of the third period with a shot from the low slot set up by Jack Drury’s feed.
Leading the Way
Nate the Great
MacKinnon is tied for the league lead in points (3) and goals (2).
OC’s Playing
Logan O’Connor is tied for first in the league in assists (2) and tied for fifth in points (2).
A Toewser Laser
Toews is tied for first among NHL defensemen in goals (1).
Tallying Points in Texas
Brock Nelson has posted 16 points (7g/9a) in 23 regular-season games against the Stars.
Coyle has registered 18 points (5g/13a) in 38 regular-season contests against Dallas, in addition to three points (2g/1a) in seven playoff games.
Martin Necas has recorded 10 points (4g/6a) in 18 regular-season games against the Stars as well as one assist in one playoff game.
Scoring in the Lone Star State
Hintz leads the Stars in goals (1) and is tied for first in points (1).
Thomas Harley leads the team in average time on ice (27:34) while being tied for the team lead in assists (1) and points (1).
Wyatt Johnston is tied for the team lead in assists (1) and points (1).
A Numbers Game
60
Cale Makar became the third-fastest defenseman in league history to record 60 playoff assists, doing so in 73 games. Bobby Orr reached that mark in 69 games and Al MacInnis did so in 71.
67
MacKinnon recorded his 67th playoff assist on Saturday and tied Mikko Rantanen for the third most in franchise history.
50
MacKinnon became the ninth-fastest player in league history to record 50 playoff goals, doing so in 89 games. Notably, that’s faster than Alex Ovechkin, who reached the 50-playoff goal mark in 103 games.
Quote That Left a Mark
"He's such a big-game player and competitive player. If he wasn't getting any scoring chances, then that's a different story, but he's been racking up scoring chances on a nightly basis and it's a matter of time for him. And he seems to come through in big moments all the time and tonight was no different to get that first one."
-- Avalanche Head Coach Jared Bednar on Artturi Lehkonen
