The Colorado Avalanche hosted the Florida Panthers as they were looking to get back in the win column following a shootout loss to the Nashville Predators. They were on a three-game point streak heading into the game. The Panthers were on a three-game winning streak and a four-game point streak, looking to extend the streak. After the final horn, the Avalanche routed the Panthers 6-2.
Game Recap
The first period saw three goals, two from the Avalanche and one from the Panthers. It only took 1:14 for the Avalanche to take a 1-0 lead. Sam Malinski scored his third of the season after coming onto the ice during a line change. During the cycle of players, Martin Necas passed it to a streaking Malinski into the Panthers’ zone, where he ripped a shot past Danill Tarasov. The second Avalanche goal came with 90 seconds left in the period as Brock Nelson scored his 12th of the season during a mad scramble in front of the Panthers’ net.
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Between the two Avalanche goals, Noah Gregor scored his first of the season on MacKenzie Blackwood, tying the game up at 7:21 into the opening frame. While the Panthers were able to tie the game at the time, the Avalanche outshot them 20-12 and took a 2-1 lead into the first intermission.
The second period was all Avalanche as they scored three goals in the middle frame. Gavin Brindley scored his fifth of the season on a backhand shot. The pass came from Brent Burns, who got his 12th assist of the season. It only took two minutes for Nathan MacKinnon to score his NHL-leading 25th goal of the season, making it a 4-1 game before the halfway point of the contest. The final goal of the period came five minutes later from Artturi Lehkonen, scoring his 12th of the season, 12:31 into the second period. After 40 minutes, the Avalanche were routing the Panthers 5-1 and outshooting them 14-8 in the period and 34-20 overall.
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The third period saw two goals, one from each side. Gabriel Landeskog got in on the scoring parade for the Avalanche as his sixth of the season made it a 6-1 game. He was able to out-wait Tarasov to score five-hole to keep the rout going. The Panthers did get one, coming from Mackie Samoskevich, making it a 6-2 game. However, that was all she wrote.
The Avalanche push their point streak to four games, following the win. They move to 22-2-7 on the season, and their next game is on Saturday, Dec. 13, against the Nashville Predators. The Panthers saw their three-game winning streak snapped and are now 15-13-2. Their next game is on Saturday, Dec. 13, against the Dallas Stars.
