INSTANT REACTION: Big game from Avs’ Blackwood and Nelson highlight 4-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs

A hat trick and a highlight-reel performance from Mackenzie Blackwood. After the way the seven-game homestand ended, this is exactly the kind of game the Avs needed to get back on their feet and prove to themselves exactly why they sit where they do in the standings.

With Scott Wedgewood placed on the non-roster list after the birth of his second child, Isak Posch got the call-up to back up Mackenzie Blackwood for the first portion of this road trip. Wedgewood will join the group later on the trip, but in the meantime, Blackwood is leading the charge with his second start in a row.

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Brock Nelson got this thing going early today, breaking past Toronto goaltender Joseph Woll. Cale Makar broke up a rush from Toronto at his own blue line and found Nelson rushing up the ice. All alone, he picks his spot past Woll and gets on the board.

Nelson also got the second goal of the game a little over a minute later, giving the Avs a nice lead to end the first period with.

On a hat trick watch, Nelson had a few other chances in the second period, but ultimately, Jack Drury finds the third goal of the game. It’s his first goal since January 3rd against his former team, the Carolina Hurricanes.

Toronto head coach Craig Berube pulls Woll with a little over five minutes remaining, and after a few attempts from a few different players, it’s Nelson with his third goal of the night to complete the hat trick.

Max Domi scores with a little over a minute remaining in regulation, but they don’t allow anything else to complete the 4-1 victory.

Heck of a game from Mackenzie Blackwood in what needed to be a big one after he let in six goals against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Brock Nelson leading the charge

Brock Nelson’s hat trick is the first one for the Avs in the new year.

It’s also not the first multi-goal game he’s had this season. While it’s his first three-goal performance this season, it’s his fifth multi-goal game this season.

His three-goal performance today puts his goal total at 27 goals in 50 games played this season, 45 points total. Given the slow start he had to the season, this is exactly the kind of performance we were expecting from the Avs’ second-line center.

Nelson leads the charge 💪 pic.twitter.com/ilK9xZq2kr

— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) January 25, 2026

Avs postgame pod