Recap: Wedgewood stands strong as Colorado sweeps back-to-back
Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images
The Avalanche get through this back-to-back, having collected all four possible points. On the second night of a back-to-back, the Colorado Avalanche took on the Anaheim Ducks for their third game of this current road trip that they’re on, which saw the Avs win by a final score of 4-2.
Let’s break down all the action from tonight!
First Period
Despite being on the second half of a back-to-back, Colorado started with a fair amount of jump in their game. They were unable to convert on a couple of early chances in the game, and Anaheim eventually found their legs. When they did, Scott Wedgewood stood tall and made some strong saves as the Ducks outshot the Avs 13-5 by the end of the period, and both teams headed into intermission tied at zero.
Second Period
Towards the end of the first period, it was clear that Colorado started to lose their legs a bit, and that was evident in the first bit of this period as well, and eventually, that would cost Colorado. Anaheim would get on the board first with a goal from Leo Carlsson. Jacob Trouba would take the puck at the top of the zone and fire it towards the front of the net, where Carlsson was standing in front, and he was able to deflect the puck home.
Leo What a tip! With an assist on this play, make that the first Ducks point for Jacob Trouba #FlyTogether pic.twitter.com/H1XNsOMS3o— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) December 21, 2024
Colorado would respond shortly after that, however, courtesy of a short-handed goal from Parker Kelly. During a Ducks power play, Logan O’Connor managed to gain control of the puck in the defensive zone and began to bring it out of the zone, and Kelly would join him on the rush to create a 2-on-1 for the Avs. O’Connor would give the puck off to Kelly, who made no mistake and was able to put it past John Gibson.
What a snipe from Parker Kelly #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/eewcs7mIUQ— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 21, 2024
The Avs would get their first lead of the night later in the period, as Valeri Nichushkin managed to find a puck in the blue paint and tuck it past Gibson. Nathan MacKinnon initially brought the puck into the offensive zone and found Cale Makar streaking into the zone, and he would be the one to shoot the puck initially. At first, it looked like Gibson managed to make the save, but the puck ended up behind him in the blue paint, and Nichushkin was able to find it and tuck it past Gibson.
Can we get a Chu Chu #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/xwJBaVZd89— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 21, 2024
Third Period
The Avs would get a power play opportunity in the early minutes of this period and actually convert on it, which is certainly a welcome change given what the power play has looked like lately. MacKinnon would end up with the puck deep in the zone at the start of this play. From there, he managed to find Makar on a cross-ice pass as he managed to come down through the circle unguarded, and Makar didn’t miss from there.
You had to see it coming #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/M5qPiTG5fZ— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 21, 2024
Anaheim would not go quietly, however, as they pulled within one late in the third period. The initial play on this goal seemed harmless enough, as the puck was simply thrown on net off of a backhand pass. As the puck was bouncing around, it deflected off of Alex Killorn’s leg and ended up in the back of the net.
Killer It's a one-goal game! #FlyTogether pic.twitter.com/UqgP4YDEh5— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) December 21, 2024
Anaheim would get a power play opportunity late in the game and pulled their goalie for a 6-on-4 advantage. Colorado managed to survive that stretch, and MacKinnon tacked on an empty net goal for some insurance late in the game, giving us the final score of 4-2.
Nathan MacKinnon's empty netter seals the win for Colorado!#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/50JjW6qblH— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) December 21, 2024
Takeaways
As far as playing games on the second half of a back-to-back goes, that was a pretty solid game from Colorado all things considered. If we’re picking out negatives, you probably don’t love that they gave up the first goal after coming out with the jump that they had in the beginning. But, knowing the final outcome and seeing how Wedgewood kept them in the game after that goal, it is what it is. As far as the goal in the third period goes, when Anaheim pulled within one, that’s one of the luckiest bounces I’ve probably seen in a while, and there’s just not a whole lot you can do on that one. That late goal didn’t end up being a momentum shifter for Anaheim either, as Colorado’s penalty kill continued to shut them down at every turn tonight.
You have to feel really good about them sweeping the back-to-back because, as a result of that, they’ve put themselves in a pretty decent spot in the standings. While the Dallas Stars do still have some games in hand, Colorado jumped them in the standings tonight with a win, and after a pretty shaky start to say the least, they’ve managed to hang in there and compete with the top teams in the Central Divison despite what they’ve gone through this season so far.
Upcoming
Colorado will head home as they take on the Seattle Kraken on Sunday, December 22. They look to finish this portion of the season on a high note before the holiday break. The puck will drop at 6:00 p.m. MT. ...
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