DENVER — In front of increasingly optimistic fans, it would be difficult for the Colorado Avalanche to live up to the precedent set by their explosive start Friday night in Winnipeg, when four of their first shots found the back of the net.
Maybe they didn’t top that, but they came darn close to matching it 24 hours later.
Colorado scored on its first two shots this time, en route to a 4-1 win over the reeling Calgary Flames on Saturday night at Ball Arena.
Nathan MacKinnon scored on the team’s first shot for the second consecutive night. He’s on a tear, with seven goals and 15 points in the last seven games; 36 points in 22 games since the calendar flipped; and 70 points this season despite missing 11 games with an injury. His 1.52 PPG average is only topped by Connor McDavid.
He even tried inching toward a Gordie Howe hat trick in the third period. Heated after Mikael Backlund checked him against the boards, MacKinnon tried to fight Backlund. When the Calgary center refused, MacKinnon kept trying, following Backlund toward the middle of the ice without his stick and getting sent to the box for roughing.
As electrifying as MacKinnon has been, the Avalanche’s recent stretch as a team is just as impressive. Since hitting rock bottom Jan. 12 with a loss at Chicago, the Avs (33-19-5) have an .824 point percentage in the last 17 games. During that stretch, they have drawn first blood 15 times and outscored opponents 24-4 in the first period.
That growing margin of victory was helped by MacKinnon and Alex Newhook on Saturday. MacKinnon beat Calgary goalie Jacob Markstrom on his high glove side after 3:05 — a sluggish start compared to his goal 19 seconds into the game in Winnipeg. The Flames were the early aggressors, but five minutes after MacKinnon’s goal, Logan O’Connor sent a pass across the width of the ice during an Avalanche rush. It ricocheted off the boards to Newhook, who was ready with a one-timer from behind the faceoff circle.
He stood in place, slid his stick through his left glove and nodded confidently. The celebrations are growing more nonchalant as the scoring becomes more assured — this was Newhook’s 13th of the season.
It came moments after the crowd treated Nazem Kadri to a massive standing ovation in the Stanley Cup hero’s first return to Ball Arena as an opposing player. After the buzz died down, an emotional Kadri took an extra moment to look up to the rafters and tap his heart.
The 2022-23 Avs, meanwhile, were continuing their surge reminiscent of last season’s frequent dominance. They killed four of five penalties and scored on a power play when Mikko Rantanen deflected a Valeri Nichushkin one-timer. Rantanen now sits at 38 goals, on pace for 54.7 with 25 games remaining.
Third periods have been the only occasional blemish during the hot streak; Colorado has been outscored 15-14. But even that was a bright spot vs. Calgary, with unlikely candidate Denis Malgin scoring one of the team’s coolest goals of the season after dangling multiple Flames.
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