Avalanche find offense in overtime win over Blackhawks

HIGHLIGHTS

GAME RUNDOWN

The Colorado Avalanche have said all the right things during this putrid stretch in which they have lost 12 of 14 games and their contest tonight at the Chicago Blackhawks was their final chance to give Avalanche fans a little Christmas cheer instead of the coal-laden December they’ve produced so far.

Early on, it looked like a completely different Avalanche team than the one that lost 6-0 at home last night to the Toronto Maple Leafs. They jumped out to a 9-1 lead in shots on goal but couldn’t solve Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford, who was making his first appearance after having an appendectomy in early December.

Despite a strong first period, the game remained scoreless heading into the second and as the game wore on, one began to wonder if either team was going to beat the other’s goaltender at any point. Officials must have gotten bored, however, as they decided to start calling some extremely questionable calls on both teams and injecting themselves into the mix.

It eventually produced fireworks as Jonathan Toews broke through with the game’s first goal, a power play goal, at 11:52 of the period. Artemi Panarin and Duncan Keith produced the assists, showing that at least one team’s stars showed up tonight.

Going into the third period with a lead has been an automatic lock for the Blackhawks leading up to this. Proving Christmas miracles aren’t just for Hollywood, the Avalanche actually scored a goal. A real, live, NHL goal that counted and everything.

Nathan MacKinnon made a fantastic pass from the corner to the blue line where Tyson Barrie corraled the pass and fired the puck on net. Instead of being blocked, it actually found an Avalanche stick and Mikko Rantanen made a perfect tip to beat Crawford. Just like that, it was 1-1 and the Avalanche were full of confidence with 14 minutes left to play.

The game found its way into overtime despite and 25 seconds into the extra frame MacKinnon flew down the right wing with the puck on a two-on-one with Barrie and he eschewed the pass in favor of beating Crawford clean over the glove side. That means the Avalanche won. Seriously. It really happened.

THREE STARS

1. Calvin Pickard
2. Corey Crawford
3. Jonathan Toews

PLAY OF THE GAME

MacKinnon’s overtime goal was a jolt to everyone who has suffered through the last several weeks of Avalanche hockey. A lightning bolt of happiness, if only for a night.

TURNING POINT

The Rantanen goal broke the longest goal-scoring drought in Avalanche history. That it tied a game in the third period on the road on the second night of a back-to-back just earned it the prestigious honor of being included in this section of the game recap.

BY THE NUMBERS

WHAT’S NEXT

Christmas break!