Colorado Avalanche: Top 5 Moments from 2019 Round 1

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DENVER, COLORADO – APRIL 17: Matt Nieto #83 of the Colorado Avalanche advances the puck against the Calgary Flames in overtime during Game Four of the Western Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Pepsi Center on April 17, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /

Matt Nieto’s 2 Short-Handed Goals

When the playoffs started, winger Matthew Nieto was coming off a season in which he had scored just four goals total in 64 games. In just five games, he already has half that total — two. And both of them are the hardest type of goal to get, the short-handed goal.

The first shorty came in the second game in Calgary. Up to that moment, the Avs hadn’t scored a single goal in the series. They were on the penalty kill, which is where Nieto picks up some of his time.

Nieto picked up the puck in his own end and drove down the boards. As he passed the Calgary blueline, he cut in. He was clear. In the slot, he snapped a shot over goalie Mike Smith:

It was the first goal of the series for Colorado, putting them up 1-0. They ended up winning 3-2.

Nieto’s second shorty came in Game 3. At the time, the Avalanche were up 3-0, but, obviously, Calgary was on the power play. So, Nieto did essentially the same thing he did in Game 2, corralling the puck and driving up the boards.

He beat Smith with a similar shot:

That goal put Colorado up 4-0 in a game they ended up winning 6-2.

When the series started, I doubted anyone thought Long Beach Native Matt Nieto would be one of the heroes. But both those goals came at important moments for the team.