DENVER , A tight game was expected, but a 15-goal thriller between two of the league’s top defensive teams caught everyone by surprise.
Cale Makar scored twice in the third period after returning from an early-game injury, helping the Colorado Avalanche overcome a blown three-goal lead to defeat the Minnesota Wild 9-6 in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series. Makar, who left in the first period with an undisclosed ailment, scored his second goal with 2:54 remaining to make it 8-6, and Nathan MacKinnon added an empty-net goal with 2:08 left to seal the win.
“This was just a weird game,” Makar said. “I don’t think we’re going to see that again. It’s probably a one-off, but glad we were able to stick with it and find a way to win.”
The game featured 14 different goal scorers and five goals in each period. It marked only the 10th playoff game with at least 15 combined goals and just the second since 1994.
Captain Gabriel Landeskog acknowledged the unusual nature of the contest. “It’s nice to be able to win games like this. Not necessarily a coach’s dream or a player’s dream , we don’t want to give up six goals. It’s good to win this one but we’ve got lots of things to clean up.”
The Avalanche improved to 72-1 since moving to Colorado in 1995-96 when leading a playoff game by three or more goals, with their only loss coming in Game 5 against St. Louis during a season they would go on to win the Stanley Cup.
Colorado jumped out to a 3-0 lead with 6:47 left in the first period, but the Wild rallied to take a 5-4 lead on a short-handed goal from Marcus Foligno late in the second. Devon Toews tied it at 5 in the same period, making this just the fourth Game 1 in playoff history with both teams scoring five or more goals through two periods.
Wild coach John Hynes commented, “Listen, the game was helter-skelter. We lost the game. There are certain areas we've got to clean up and be ready to clean up. If you lose a game, you’ve got to take the lessons out of it, move on.”
Both goalies made timely saves despite the high scoring. Scott Wedgewood stopped 30 shots, while Jesper Wallstedt made 34 saves. Marcus Foligno defended Wallstedt, saying, “He’s great. He’s going to bounce back. This wasn’t on him.”
The Wild will also be without Joel Eriksson Ek and Jonas Brodin for Game 2 in Denver on Tuesday.
Makar took a scary hit early in the first period but returned in the second after testing his skating. He also assisted on Nick Blankenburg’s goal. “I was just trying to get back and feel good,” Makar said. “Had to check a couple things out, make sure it was good to go.”
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