Semyon Varlamov makes 51 saves, Avalanche win

TORONTO -- Semyon Varlamov made 51 saves to lift the Colorado Avalanche to a 3-1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre on Sunday.
Colorado (11-15-1), which lost 10-1 to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, went 2-2-0 on its four-game road trip.
"I like the response we got from our team. Guys competed hard and they were focused," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. "It wasn't easy out there, that's for sure, but we got a big night from Varly, and we found a way to get the job done and get a win."

WATCH: All Avalanche vs. Maple Leafs highlights
Antoine Bibeau made 26 saves in his NHL debut for Toronto (11-11-5), which has lost four of its past five games.
"I was feeling really comfortable," Bibeau said. "I thought I would be more nervous. I think I was well-prepared for that game, I had a good week of practice. The boys made me feel comfortable in the room, and I felt really good once the game got going."
The Maple Leafs outshot the Avalanche 21-8 in the first period, but Varlamov allowed Colorado to take a 1-0 lead when Mikko Rantanen scored on the power play with 1:09 remaining. Rantanen took a pass from Matt Duchene and put it into an open net with Bibeau out of position.
The Maple Leafs had killed off 18 consecutive power plays before allowing the goal.
Varlamov was 0-4-0 in his four prior starts, allowing 14 goals in those games, and gave up six goals in relief of Calvin Pickard against the Canadiens on Saturday.
"Confidence, you know," Varlamov said when asked how he turned around his performance. "When you are a little bit struggling, it's hard sometimes to find that confidence. The team gave me confidence today when we scored the first goal."
Nathan MacKinnon scored his eighth goal at 7:27 of the third period to give the Avalanche a 2-0 lead.
Maple Leafs forward Leo Komarov was assessed a double minor for high sticking MacKinnon on the play, but Toronto killed off each power play.
With the Maple Leafs pressuring, Avalanche defenseman Patrick Wiercioch knocked the net off its moorings and was assessed a penalty for delay of game with 4:05 remaining. Colorado defenseman Nikita Zadorov was called for cross checking Nazem Kadri with 2:56 left, giving Toronto a 6-on-3 power play with Bibeau pulled, and defenseman Jake Gardiner scored 20 seconds later to make it 2-1.
Blake Comeau scored into an empty net with 1:11 remaining to give Colorado a 3-1 lead.

Goal of the game

MacKinnon took a high stick from Komarov but managed to keep control of the puck, cut around Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly, and put a wrist shot past Bibeau. The goal turned out to be the game-winner. "I knew where the puck was and I knew that I'd beat Komarov," MacKinnon said. "He was just kind of flailing, and the stick got me. Maybe [Rielly] thought I was done playing, and he wanted to poke-check and get possession and get the whistle blown. I guess I took advantage of that, and I'm just happy it went in."

Video: COL@TOR: MacKinnon dangles around defense for goal

Save of the game

Varlamov stopped Maple Leafs forward Zach Hyman at the top of the crease at 5:47 of the third period, stretching out his left pad to keep the Avalanche up 1-0.

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Highlight of the game

Comeau lost his stick at the Toronto blue line early in the second period, leading to a 2-on-1 the other way. Maple Leafs forward William Nylander tried to use center Tyler Bozak as a decoy and shot to the short side, but Varlamov was not fooled, making the save at 1:54.

Unsung performance of the game

Avalanche defenseman Francois Beauchemin had the puck bounce over his stick at the Maple Leafs blue line early in the third period, but he outraced Hyman to the loose puck in the neutral zone, diving to swat it away and preventing Hyman from getting a breakaway.

They said it

"They throw a lot of things at you. They have some good quickness down there and work the back of the net real well. They're constantly throwing pucks into the crease and off the goalie's pads down low. At times, we did a good job taking care of that puck, collapsing around the front of the net, and other times we had some breakdowns and Varly had to make some saves. They had six power-play opportunities too, and they earned those by skating. ...You can see why they had so many shot attempts, for sure." -- Avalanche coach Jared Bednar on the Maple Leafs generating 52 shots on goal
"My big thing for me, I just felt comfortable. I wasn't in panic mode when [Antoine Bibeau] was in the net, and neither were the players." -- Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock on the 22-year-old goalie's first NHL game

Need to know

Maple Leafs right wing Mitchell Marner was dropped to the fourth line with center Ben Smith and left wing Matt Martin to start the game but was reunited with his usual linemates, Bozak and James van Riemsdyk, midway through the second period. He had an assist on Gardiner's goal to end a four-game point drought but has not scored in his past 10. ... Toronto's 21 shots in the first period were the most it's had in one period this season.

What's next

Avalanche: Host the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; NBCSN, TCN-PH, NHL.TV)
Maple Leafs:Host the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; TSN4, CSN-CA, NHL.TV)