Avalanche rally from down 3, top Canucks in OT for 5th straight win

VANCOUVER -- Valeri Nichushkin scored 30 seconds into overtime, and the Colorado Avalanche rallied from down three to extend their winning streak to five games with a 4-3 victory against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Wednesday.

Nichushkin scored on a power play after Vancouver defenseman Carson Soucy cleared the puck over the glass with nine seconds left in the third period. Nathan MacKinnon’s one-timer was partially blocked but bounced in off Nichushkin’s visor atop the crease.

“Best win of the year for sure,” MacKinnon said. “We didn't quit.”

The goal came after Ross Colton tied it 3-3 at 8:43 of the third with a backhand from his knees at the edge of the crease that hit Canucks goalie Casey DeSmith’s pad while lying in the net after making a diving save on a Miles Wood wraparound. The goal was confirmed after it was determined that the puck crossed the line following video review.

MacKinnon had a goal and an assist to extend his point streak to 14 games, and Mikko Rantanen also had a goal and an assist for the Avalanche (42-20-5), who were coming off a 6-2 win at the Calgary Flames on Tuesday. Cale Makar had two assists and Alexandar Georgiev made 18 saves.

Colorado outshot Vancouver 17-3 in the third.

“We really dominated the third period,” MacKinnon said. “It was a fun win and to have that kind of third against this team -- that’s a really, really good team, a tough team to play against -- there was a lot of fight tonight.”

J.T. Miller and Nikita Zadorov each had a goal and an assist for the Canucks (42-17-8), who had won four straight. DeSmith made 30 saves in his first start since No. 1 goalie Thatcher Demko sustained a lower-body injury against the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday that will keep him out week to week.

“Good start and then we let a tired team get back into it and eventually take over the game,” Miller said. “We just kind of hope it works out when we have leads instead of taking control of the game … We didn't win our battles, we didn't execute our passes, we're dumping it in for no reason, no forecheck. They outplayed us, they deserved to win.”

Rantanen cut it to 3-1 with three seconds left in the second period, redirecting a Devon Toews pass in from atop the crease. The goal extended Rantanen’s point streak to 11 games and 20 points (five goals, 15 assists).

“It's a big goal,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. “You get a little momentum and there's a bit more belief and you start to push like we did in the third period.”

MacKinnon made it 3-2 on a 5-on-3 power play at 3:19 of the third period, one-timing a Cale Makar pass over DeSmith’s blocker from the left circle.

“MacKinnon said ‘I'm taking this game,’” Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said. “They started to go, MacKinnon and them started to fly, and we just couldn't get anybody to grab hold of a puck, whether it's on a forecheck or a breakout, just to kind of slow things down. We were a little hot potato [with the puck] and we were kind of soft on the puck, mostly in the third. We need some guys to dig in on certain situations and we couldn't get anybody to grab a puck for us and hold it.”

Miller gave Vancouver a 1-0 lead 24 seconds into the first period by deflecting a point shot past Georgiev’s blocker.

Ilya Mikheyev extended it to 2-0 at 2:44. Miller gained the zone and skated the puck behind the net and out the other side before centering to Mikheyev in the low slot for a redirection and his first goal since Dec. 17.

“Just more confidence for me,” Mikheyev said. “Too much thinking sometimes. Just keep believing, keep working. I know it’s coming.”

Zadorov made it 3-0 at 4:23 of the second after Garland passed to him atop the left circle for a one-timer past the glove of a screened Georgiev.

“I think we lift our foot off the gas,” Zadorov said. “We’ve got to have a killer instinct. We can't give them any chance to come back in the game. They got one late in the second and then they got a power play and then they just keep coming, and we couldn’t really get out of the zone. The teams like that, the players, their caliber … when you get a 3-0 (lead), you’ve got to learn how to play with this lead and just don't feed the animal. Just step on their throat and then shut it down.”

NOTES: MacKinnon has 30 points (10 goals, 20 assists) during his 14-game point streak, which is the longest active streak in the NHL, and continues to improve on his career high with a League-leading 115 points (42 goals, 73 assists), the highest team total since Joe Sakic had had 118 points in 2000-01. … Makar finished his 300th NHL game with 319 points (82 goals, 237 assists), the second most by a defenseman through 300 games behind Bobby Orr (341 points). … Colorado forward Jonathan Drouin was a late scratch after taking warmups with a lower-body injury and is day to day.