Avalanche edge Golden Knights in NHL Outdoors at Lake Tahoe after delay

Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and two assists, and the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 in the Bridgestone NHL Outdoors Saturday in Stateline, Nevada.

The game started at 3:12 p.m. ET but was suspended after the first period with Colorado leading 1-0 because of poor ice conditions resulting from extreme sunlight.
The 31st outdoor game in NHL history resumed shortly after midnight ET following a delay of more than eight hours.
"It feels like a blur, honestly," MacKinnon told NBCSN. "The ice was bad, but we never thought of stopping. I didn't realize that was a possibility. I thought we were just going to grind it out and head home. I don't know, just muck it up. This was definitely more enjoyable the second and third tonight. It [stinks] the lake and mountains weren't in the background, but it's just so sunny at altitude. It's like that in Denver too. When it's hot it's tough. We got it done."

Devon Toews had a goal and an assist, Mikko Rantanen had two assists, and Philipp Grubauer made 27 saves for Colorado (9-4-1).
The Avalanche won for the first time in three outdoor games. They lost their first two in the NHL Stadium Series: 5-3 to the Detroit Red Wings at Coors Field in Denver on Feb. 27, 2016; and 3-1 to the Los Angeles Kings at the United States Air Force Academy on Feb. 15, 2020.
"The overall experience, it was amazing," Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog said. "It's a memory of a lifetime. Finally, we broke the curse of these outdoor games and we were able to win one so that makes it a lot more special."
Alec Martinez and Alex Tuch scored, and Marc-Andre Fleury made 36 saves for Vegas (10-4-1), which was playing its first outdoor game.
The Avalanche defeated the Golden Knights 3-2 on Tuesday after losing to them 1-0 on Sunday. They will play for a fourth straight time at Colorado on Monday.
"It's one of those moments, one of those games that you will remember because of the setting and the situation," Vegas coach Peter DeBoer said. "I think the disappointment for our group was just in how we executed in the first period. I thought we could have been a lot better. I thought [Fleury] gave us a chance to hang around. I thought we came out and reset tonight and played better. Still, we could never catch up. We were chasing the game."
Samuel Girard's goal at 2:58 of the first period, on a wrist shot from the right face-off circle off a pass from MacKinnon, gave the Avalanche a 1-0 lead.
Colorado outshot Vegas 17-8 in the period.
"I loved our first period," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. "I thought we came out with lots of jump, great intensity. We were hounding pucks. I thought our guys were really skating well."
The Golden Knights tied it 1-1 at 7:37 of the second period when Martinez scored on the rebound of Alex Pietrangelo's shot.
Girard and Martinez scored exactly nine hours apart.
"I'll remember this experience," Martinez said. "Anytime you have an opportunity to play in an outdoor game, it's pretty special. … As for the game, it's pretty disappointing."
The Avalanche went ahead 2-1 when MacKinnon scored from the right circle on a three-zone solo rush at 11:18. He forced a turnover with a backcheck, got the puck in Colorado's defensive zone from Toews, skated through the neutral zone and forced Pietrangelo to back up in Vegas' defensive zone, giving him the space to score on a quick shot to the far side.
"I had some speed," MacKinnon said. "It was a tough gap for the forward and defenseman. ... I wasn't really aiming, just trying to get it off on [Pietrangelo's] stick and caught the far side."
Colorado killed a 5-on-3 for 1:22 early in the third period, allowing Vegas one shot on goal.
"That is an opportunity for us to jump back in the game and we have to seize those opportunities," DeBoer said. "Disappointed with our looks and our execution."

Toews made it 3-1 at 13:11 of the third, scoring from the point with Fleury screened.
Tuch scored 1:14 later with a spin-o-rama move to make it 3-2 at 14:25.
"It was probably weirdest day of hockey I've ever been part of," Rantanen said. "It started with the early morning and a noon [PT] game, and then all of a sudden after the first they come in and tell us we're going to play at 9 p.m. tonight. It was kind of weird, but we got through it and we got the two points, so it was fun after all."
NOTES: MacKinnon's three points matched the most by any player in an outdoor game. He has five points (two goals, three assists) in three outdoor games. … Landeskog (two shots, three hits in 19:01 of ice time), Girard (20:48) and center Tyson Jost (12:28) returned for the Avalanche after each missed the past two games because of COVID-19 protocol. Forward Matt Calvert returned after missing seven games with an upper-body injury and had four shots in 12:32. … Defenseman Cale Makar played a Colorado-high 24:10 after missing two games with an upper-body injury. … Fleury is 0-3-0 in outdoor games. He played his first two with the Pittsburgh Penguins, losing 3-1 to the Washington Capitals in the NHL Winter Classic at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh on Jan. 1, 2011, and 5-1 to the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stadium Series at Soldier Field in Chicago on March 1, 2014.