Closed Out the Kings
The Avalanche defeated the Los Angeles Kings 5-1 and won its Round One series at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, April 26th. Nathan MacKinnon scored twice, while Cale Makar, Nicolas Roy and Devon Toews each added a tally. In net for the Avs, Scott Wedgewood stopped 24 of the 25 shots he faced. MacKinnon opened the on the power play at 13:13 of the opening frame with his first goal of the playoffs via a left-circle one-timer set up by Nazem Kadri’s cross-slot feed. Colorado doubled its lead at 5:48 of the middle frame when Makar scored his second goal of the playoffs via a right-circle wrist shot after dancing around Kings forward Taylor Ward. Joel Edmundson put the Kings on the board at 13:43 of the second period via a left-circle wrist shot. The Avs took a 3-1 lead at 3:13 of the third period when Roy scored his second goal of the playoffs by cleaning up a rebound off the rush from the doorstep. Devon Toews made it a 4-1 game at 6:01 of the third period with his first goal of the playoffs via a left-circle wrist shot off the rush. Colorado took a 5-1 lead at 14:22 of the third period when MacKinnon scored his second goal of the game and playoffs via an empty-net tally.
Leading the Way
Nate the Great
MacKinnon is tied for the Avs lead in goals (2), assists (2) and points (4).
O Captain, My Captain
Gabriel Landeskog is tied for first on the Avalanche in points (4), goals (2) and assists (2).
Get Lehky
Artturi Lehkonen is tied for the Colorado lead in assists (2), goals (2) and points (4).
Series History
The Avalanche and Wild have met in the playoffs on three previous occasions, all in the First Round, with Minnesota winning in 2003 and 2014 in seven games while Colorado was victorious in six games in 2008.
Defeated Dallas
The Wild defeated the Dallas Stars 5-2 in Game Six of Round One to win its series on Thursday at Grand Casino Arena. Minnesota’s Quinn Hughes opened the scoring at 6:23 of the first period. In the middle frame, Wyatt Johnston tied the game for Dallas on the power play at 7:01, Mavrik Bourque gave the Stars a 2-1 lead at 16:08 and Vladimir Tarasenko scored for Minnesota to make it 2-2. In the third period, Hughes gave the Wild a 3-2 lead at 10:38 before Matt Boldy made it 5-2 after empty-net goals at 18:29 and 19:45.
Making Plays Against Minnesota
MacKinnon has posted 70 points (27g/43a) in 55 regular-season games against the Wild, in addition to 10 points (2g/8a) in seven playoff contests.
Makar has registered 26 points (6g/20a) in 29 contests against Minnesota.
Landeskog has recorded 46 points (21g/25a) in 52 regular-season games against the Wild, along with four points (3g/1a) in seven playoff contests.
Scoring in St. Paul
Boldy leads the Wild in goals (6), is tied for first in points (9) and ranks tied for third in assists (3).
Kirill Kaprizov leads Minnesota in assists (7), is tied for first in points (9) and ranks tied for fourth in goals (2).
Hughes is third on the Wild in points (8), second in assists (6) and tied for fourth in goals (2).
A Numbers Game
.950
Among goaltenders with at least 30 minutes played in the playoffs, Wedgewood’s .950 save percentage is the third highest in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
1.25
Colorado’s 1.25 goals allowed per game are the second fewest in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
25.3
The Avalanche’s 25.3 shots on goal allowed per game are the third fewest in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Quote That Left a Mark
“I think they're a physical team. A hard-tracking team. They do a lot of details very well. So we're gonna have to match that detail and that focus and that determination."
-- Nazem Kadri on facing the Wild in Round Two
