Colorado Avalanche captain scores first goal to complete comeback

Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog got his first goal in over 1,000 days, beating Jake Oettinger of the Dallas Stars to give the Avs a 3-0 lead in Game 4 of their opening-round series.

Landeskog buried a slapshot at the 13:10 mark of the second, raising his arms to the sky in celebration as the captain’s comeback is now fully complete.

Here’s a look at the tally:

Landeskog wired the shot, beating Oettinger who had no chance of stopping that rocket. The celebration and the crowd erupting at Ball Arena said it all as Landeskog got big high fives from teammates.

The goal capped off a strong push from the Avalanche as they look to even the series at 2-2 before heading back to Dallas for Game 5.

With Landeskog fully healthy and contributing offensively, the Avalanche could be the team to beat in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Landeskog registers two points in Colorado Avalanche win over Dallas Stars

When everything was said and done, Gabriel Landeskog registered two points in the Avalanche’s 4-0 blanking of the Dallas Stars in Game 4. The dominant effort began and ended with the captain leading the way as the Avalanche tied the series at games a piece.

In addition to Landeskog’s goal in the second period, he assisted on Samuel Girard’s third-period goal. Here’s a look:

The play started with the Avalanche cycling the puck in the Dallas zone, leading to Brock Nelson dishing the puck to Samuel Girard, whose point shot made it past Casey DeSmith, but it wasn’t just Girard’s strong shot that hit the back of the net, it was Landeskog’s mayhem in front of the net that led to the screen that facilitated the goal.

Just by looking at the replay, you wouldn’t think that Landeskog had been away for so long with such a horrific knee injury. But here was the captain using his size and strength to outmuscle the 6’7” Lian Bichsel.

It’s also worth pointing out that Brock Nelson had two assists playing on that line with Gabriel Landeskog. So, it’s a great sign to see Nelson getting his offensive juices flowing. The Avs need contributions up and down the lineup. Getting Nelson on a hot streak will bode well as the series now shifts to Texas for Game 5.

The Avs hope another solid effort like the one on Saturday night will put them one win away from a second-round date with either the Winnipeg Jets or St. Louis Blues.