Landeskog the horse wins during Avalanche loss

Gabriel Landeskog the human may have lost his game on Saturday, but Landeskog the horse was a big winner.

The 4-year-old gelding named after the Colorado Avalanche captain won his first race of 2020 in Henderson, Kentucky.

The Colorado Avalanche lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in Stanley Cup Qualifier Round Robin play for the Western Conference's No. 1 overall seed on Saturday, but Landeskog, the horse, owned by Avalanche teammate Erik Johnson, claimed a victory.

"It's a big win. Gabe was excited," Johnson said Monday of his horse's first-place finish. "It was cool, but it's not really our primary focus right now. It was something to laugh about with the guys after the game."

Don't worry about the human Landeskog either, as his Avalanche will have the No. 2 seed for the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The horse's win, which came in 1:08.96, was the third of his six-race career and marked his fifth top-2 finish. Landeskog's success has delighted Colorado's locker room.

"I heard he won the other day, so that's good," Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. "It seems to be catching on a little bit around our room. Guys are rooting for [Johnson] and for his horses to have success, and guys keep an eye on that in their down time."

Johnson said he named the horse for Landeskog because "he's a good-looking horse" if you were wondering.

NHL.com Independent Correspondent Rick Sadowski contributed to this report.