The Colorado Avalanche got off to a good start in their second-round series against the Minnesota Wild in the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs.
Colorado won a “wild” contest by a mind-shocking 9-6 score. What shaped up to be a low-scoring affair was hardly that. The Avs lead 3-2 after 20 minutes. Then, headed to the dressing room tied at five after 40 minutes.
The Avalanche poured it on in the third, opening up a 7-5 lead. While Minnesota came back to within a goal, the Avs pulled away, getting a crucial eighth goal to open up a two-goal lead.
Nathan MacKinnon sealed the victory with an empty-netter.
All told, Cale Makar outdueled Quinn Hughes by scoring two goals and an assist. But the best defenseman on the right was actually Devon Toews. Makar’s defense partner registered four points (1G, 3A), with Martin Necas getting three helpers.
Avalanche, Wild, threw defense out the window
Both the Avalanche and Wild did a great job of keeping their first-round opponents in check. But on Sunday night, the defense went out the window. It looked like the game would be a blowout for a while when the Avalanche opened up a 3-0 first-period lead.
But Hughes did a good job of leading his team back into the end. The usually reliable, lights-out Scott Wedgewood seemed human. He allowed a couple of shaky goals, though he deserves credit for shutting the door when he had to.
The fact is that Wedgwood can’t bear the blame in this contest. The Avalanche gave up 36 total shots. You just can’t do that and expect to win playoff games.
Fortunately, Minnesota wasn’t any better defensively. They surrendered 43 shots to the best team in the NHL, and, well, when you mess with the bull, you get the horns.
The horns were nine goals in a game the Wild could have won.
Looking ahead to Game 2
If Game 1 is a harbinger for the rest of the series, the scoreboard will be getting one heck of a workout.
The likeliest path forward is that both teams will look to reset and recalibrate their defensive strategies. The Wild realized they can’t outgun the Avalanche, while Colorado has realized they can’t afford to let a good team like Minnesota think it has a chance to win games.
So, it will be surprising to see another high-scoring game in Game 2. The score should regress to the mean moving forward.
There is something to be said, however, about high-scoring games. They will make this series extremely entertaining, especially when considering that no lead will be safe.
Game 2 is set for Tuesday night at Ball Arena. The Avalanche will be looking to take a 2-0 series lead to Minnesota, and potentially avoid the series returning to Colorado.
Add us as a preferred source on Google