Matt Duchene eliminated his former team and boyhood club, the Colorado Avalanche, with a double overtime winner for the Dallas Stars by the score of 2-1. The Stars take the series 4-2 and advance to their second straight Western Conference Final.
Colorado’s season comes to a crushing end with the heartbreaking multi-overtime loss. Now, the focus turns to the Avalanche’s offseason, which should be interesting. Free agency moves will happen, contracts will be signed, and a gaping hole will require a big decision.
First Period
Colorado started the game well, with some looks at the net. But they did let Dallas grow into the game a little bit more, with the away team at one point leading the shot total 5-4 midway through the period. Their best chance came from Evgenii Dadonov, who had an open goal on a rebound, but he hit the side of the frame.
But then, the Avs turned it up another notch. With the home crowd behind them pushing them on, they had so many good chances but were all denied by Jake Oettinger. Devon Toews had the first look go wide from the slot, and Ross Colton followed up a no-call high stick on Josh Manson.
Manson had a look of his own denied in the slot, with the rebound just bouncing away from Zach Parise with a wide-open net. Nathan MacKinnon had two rushes in the final two minutes stopped, with the second one finding the stick of Artturi Lehkonen which was also covered. Oettinger did enough to keep his team even at zero going into the middle frame.
Second Period
The chances kept coming for Colorado, with Cale Makar’s wraparound finding Jonathan Drouin in front but Oettinger robbed him. But the Avs finally got their breakthrough. Matt Duchene took a cross-checking penalty, leading to Mikko Rantanen scoring from a tight angle for the lead.
With Dallas only having nine shots on goal midway through the game, they needed to swing things in their favor. They got a chance to when Manson took an interference penalty, but Colorado killed it off brilliantly.
It did lead to things evening out between the two teams, with both teams having 13 shots on goal at one point. But the Stars were pushing forward, without getting many good looks on Alexandar Georgiev. They led 15-13 in the shot total at the end of the period but needed a goal to stop them from heading home for Game Seven.
Third Period
The Avalanche lead would quickly be resolved by the Stars captain. Jamie Benn came streaking in through the slot alone, chased by two defenders. The puck would find him, and he would glide it by Georgiev to even it up at one.
Colorado also struggled to move the puck, with Makar getting away with a turnover. Dallas switched things up on their lines, and the Avs had difficulties dealing with it. They did figure it out eventually, with a good shift from the first line setting up loads of chances for Sam Girard, Rantanen, and Drouin.
At the other end, Dallas had the more threatening looks and controlled the play more than the home team. Their best chance came from Evgenii Dadonov on a wraparound, which was brilliantly stopped by Georgiev. Neither team would find the winner, and we headed to overtime for the second time in this series.
First Overtime
It would be all Dallas in the first overtime. They had multiple shifts spanning over multiple minutes in the Avs zone, which were just managed to be dealt with. The best early Avs chance came from Lehkonen in the slot, which Oettinger saved point blank.
Arguably the controversy of the playoffs reared its head when Marchment looked to have scored the series-winning overtime goal. However, the referee immediately waved off the goal for goaltender interference, with Matt Duchene taking Georgiev’s stick with him and moving him out of the net. Take your pick whether or not it was a legal goal, but it was enough to go to yet another overtime period.
Second Overtime
Duchene was stopped in the opening 30 seconds on a breakaway and nearly ended it then and there. But then, the Avalanche would force the issue. Parise and Lehkonen had golden opportunities right in front, but a diving Oettinger managed to keep the puck out of the net both times.
This would end up being the difference. Duchene didn’t miss his next chance when it came along. The puck bounced to him perfectly at the side of the net, and he eliminated his former team to move on to the Western Conference Final for the second consecutive year.
Yeti Takeaways
Colorado was great, coming out on the gas and congesting the Stars’ offense. They only had nine shots on net halfway through regulation. However, Pete DeBoer’s line changes in the third period shook the Avs, and Jared Bednar and company could not respond accordingly. It would then be Dallas leading the way from there on out, except for a five-minute stretch of the second overtime where Colorado could have forced a Game Seven if it just bounced the right way.
In the end, offense was not enough for the Avalanche. They only recorded 30 shots in 4.5 periods of hockey and only scored one. Credit to Oettinger for making some unbelievable saves to keep it as such, but if you’re Colorado you have to finish them. They did not do it and ultimately fell short. What might hurt the most from this series loss is the fact they lost all three home games in this series. On top of that, they were outscored 11-3 in those three games. One goal per game is just unacceptable when trying to win a series, let alone come back in one. Game Four was an anomaly considering the Valeri Nichushkin news, but nonetheless, it was far from good enough on the offensive side.
When looking at the season and the moves made by the front office, this could be seen as a major loss in their eyes. We know/might have seen the last game in Avalanche jerseys for the following players: Zach Parise, Andrew Cogliano, Jack Johnson, Jonathan Drouin, and other offseason acquisitions like Brandon Duhaime and Sean Walker. With all the moves made and to be eliminated in the second round, was it an unsuccessful year? Make the decision yourself, but it’s hard to see it not being so with how brutally it ended.
Next on the Mountain
Unfortunately, the offseason comes next for the Avalanche. No hockey until September.