MacKinnon, Avalanche rally past Red Wings in OT

DENVER --Nathan MacKinnon scored at 2:29 of overtime, and the Colorado Avalanche rallied for a 4-3 win against the Detroit Red Wings at Pepsi Center on Tuesday.

MacKinnon scored glove side from the high slot on a 3-on-2 after Tyson Barrie tied it 3-3 at 18:25 of the third period on a one-timer from the point through traffic.
Colorado is 2-11 in overtime this season.
WATCH: [All Red Wings vs. Avalanche highlights]
"Honestly, I was just going with my instincts," MacKinnon said. "I didn't even really look that much. I just saw the scouting report and it said high glove was a common place to score a goal on him.
"I just shot it. I wasn't aiming for the post or anything, just find the right side. I think it kind of went by his ear, so it was an awkward spot to put his hand. It's exciting to finally win one in OT. It feels good."

Mikko Rantanen had a goal and two assists, MacKinnon and Barrie each had a goal and an assist, and Semyon Varlamov made 20 saves for the Avalanche (29-26-12), who had lost two in a row and are two points behind the Minnesota Wild for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference.
Filip Zadina scored his first NHL goal, Danny DeKeyser and Niklas Kronwall scored, and Jonathan Bernier made 30 saves for the Red Wings (23-33-10), who have been outscored 37-20 in an eight-game losing streak (0-5-3).

Kronwall gave Detroit a 1-0 lead at 16:47 of the first period when his shot from the blue line deflected off Avalanche forward Sheldon Dries and trickled past Varlamov five-hole two seconds after a power play expired. It was Kronwall's first goal since Dec. 20 (30 games).
J.T. Compher tied 1-1 at 1:44 of the second period on a shot from the high slot.
DeKeyser put the Red Wings ahead 2-1 at 2:22 of the third period on a shot from the slot off a pass from Jacob de la Rose.
Rantanen tied it 2-2 at 8:30 with a power-play goal, scoring on a backhand after getting the rebound of Barrie's initial shot.
"We weren't sharp enough," Kronwall said. "I thought we grinded our way in. It wasn't perfect by any means, but we set ourselves up pretty good in the third. Unfortunately, we just couldn't hang in there."

Zadina, playing in his fourth NHL game, gave Detroit a 3-2 lead at 17:43 of the third period with a one-timer from the right circle that deflected off Avalanche defenseman Ian Cole's stick on the power play after Colorado was penalized for too many men.
"It's good, it feels good and hopefully we win some games soon and it will be sweeter," Zadina said. "That was a great pass [from Filip Hronek]. He saw me there and we're kind of used to each other. It was a great moment. Unfortunately, we didn't win."
Barrie's goal, his first since Jan. 23 (17 games), came with Varlamov pulled for the extra skater.
"I was going real good before the All-Star break and it's been a little cold since then," he said. "It's been a little frustrating because I know my job is to produce and help this team score. It was nice to get a couple (points) tonight and hopefully they get the ball rolling.
"They seemed to be giving us a little time up top. [MacKinnon] threw it through to [Rantanen] and he made a nice little one touch (pass) right on the platter for me. It's probably a shot I've taken 20 times in the last little while and it hasn't gone in. I'm not usually super emotional when I score, but I think I gave a little fist pump there. I was pretty pumped. That one felt good."

They said it

"Our competition level's been good. Our competition level tonight was excellent, as good as we've competed in a while. Mentally, we've been kicked a little bit and we just have to keep getting back up." -- Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill
"It feels good. I feel like we've said it all year long, it's like we have a team that's supposed to be good in overtime. It's just gotten to the point where it's just sort of locking our minds a little bit going into overtime and all of the sudden you don't have that swagger, that confidence." -- Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog

Need to know

Rantanen has nine points (five goals, four assists) in his past eight games. … Landeskog had an assist and has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in his past nine games. … Red Wings forward Thomas Vanek had two assists after missing the previous three games with a lower-body injury.

What's next

Red Wings:Host the New York Rangers on Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET; FS-D, MSG, NHL.TV)
Avalanche:At the Dallas Stars on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET; FS-SW, ALT, NHL.TV)