Devils lose ninth straight game

DENVER --Francois Beauchemin scored with 1:14 left in the third period, and the Colorado Avalanche sent the New Jersey Devils to their ninth straight loss, 3-2 at Pepsi Center on Thursday.
It was Beauchemin's third goal this season and first in 22 games.

"There were a couple guys in front battling for a screen," Beauchemin said. "The rebound came right back to me around the dot in the faceoff circle. I took a quick wrister and I was able to put it through. It was a good feeling."
WATCH: All Devils vs. Avalanche highlights
Devils coach John Hynes said Beauchemin never should have been in position to score.
"We have a winger go out to the point, guy stick checks [Beauchemin], swings by him," Hynes said. "The guy stays in, scores the goal. You can't play like that with a minute and 14 left. That's the game."
Nathan MacKinnon and Rene Bourque also scored for the Avalanche (19-44-3), who won their second game in a row to match their season-best streak and are 10-21-2 at home.
"Any win is great right now," Beauchemin said. "It's a tough situation to be in but we can try to get some positives by winning some games."

Taylor Hall and Stefan Noesen scored for the Devils (25-30-12), who are 0-7-2 in the past nine games.
"This was a tough loss to a team just as hungry as we are," Hall said. "To be honest, it is a team we should beat. We have struggled to score goals at times this year and we're struggling right now. When that happens, you want to simplify things and make sure pucks are getting to the net and getting to the slot."
The Devils tied the game 1-1 on Hall's 15th goal 42 seconds into the third period when he knocked the rebound of Ben Lovejoy's shot by goalie Calvin Pickard for his first goal in eight games.
The goal ended the Devils scoreless drought at 174:51 covering parts of four games since Kyle Palmieri scored at 5:51 of the third period Saturday against the Boston Bruins.
Bourque put the Avalanche ahead 2-1 at 4:05 of the third with a shot that deflected past goalie Cory Schneider for his 11th goal.
The Devils tied it 2-2 on Noesen's fifth goal at 6:13.
The Avalanche took a 1-0 lead at 11:11 of the second period on MacKinnon's 14th goal. He beat Schneider with a shot from along the wall above the right circle after taking a pass from Tyson Barrie.
Pickard made 25 saves and Schneider had 19.

Goal of the game

Beauchemin's game-winner went through a screen from the left circle after the rebound of his first shot caromed back to him.

Save of the game

Schneider was on his side at the edge of the crease when he deflected a shot by Avalanche forward Gabriel Landeskog with 11 seconds to play in the first period.

Highlight of the game

Off a faceoff, Devils forward Beau Bennett carried the puck behind the net, causing Pickard to momentarily turn his head the wrong way. Bennett turned and passed back to Noesen, who sent shot that deflected off Pickard and into the net.
"I thought it was an unbelievable play," Pickard said. "I think that might be on the highlight reels."

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Unsung performance of the game

Avalanche forward Sven Andrighetto took a big hit along the left-wing boards to set up Bourque's goal.

They said it

"It's nice to have success, everybody's happy when you're winning. There's no reason why we can't play our game every night. It's nice to get some wins on home ice where our fans have stuck with it. The last two games have been good for us, but we want to replicate that every night." -- Avalanche goalie Calvin Pickard
"We have to win, we can't keep losing. Whether it's tonight or next week, it has to happen. We have to find a way and maybe some people should step up, like myself, and steal a game, win a game we shouldn't or win a game we should." -- Devils goalie Cory Schneider

Need to know

The Avalanche have won two in a row for the first time since Feb. 4-7 when they defeated the Winnipeg Jets and Montreal Canadiens, respectively. … Devils captain Andy Greene rejoined the team Thursday following the passing of his father on Saturday, but didn't play. He's expected to play Saturday against the Arizona Coyotes. "He didn't have a chance to skate, he hasn't skated since last Saturday," Hynes said. "If he got in last night he would have played, but he had real tough travel coming in."

What's next

Devils: At the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday (8 p.m. ET; FS-A PLUS, MSG, NHL.TV)
Avalanche:Host the Ottawa Senators on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; CITY, TVA Sports, ALT, NHL.TV)