Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche beat the Nashville Predators 2-1 to take a 2-0 lead in the first-round NHL playoff series.

He lined in a shot to the stick side of Ingram on a mini-breakaway. “He’s definitely a different animal in the playoffs,” Makar said. “It was also a point in his life where he hit rock bottom, but he also felt really supported,” Hynes said. The best scoring chance was Makar on a breakaway, only to have his shot land in the glove of Ingram. MacKinnon scored the first goal on the game's first shot 5:25 into the action. “Stepping in with not a ton of experience, he was definitely ready to go. Ingram was at his finest in the third period when he stopped a point-blank shot from Nazem Kadri with his left pad. Colorado had a goal disallowed in the closing seconds of the second period for goaltender interference. Shortly after, the Predators had a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:52 when Nichushkin went to the penalty box for a high-stick. “For us, we were able to get a lucky one in overtime.” He allowed MacKinnon's goal on the first shot of the game and turned back everything until Makar's goal. The goal made for quite a present.

Cale Makar and the Colorado Avalanche go up two-nil in the series against the Nashville Predators. The Avalanche came into the game firing on all.

Back in Makar's hometown of Calgary, his dad, Gary, let out an adrenaline-fueled yell.

“As the game went on we got better and better at getting to the net and trying to get in his eyes. “Because of his quickness, movement and lateral ability, he finds a way to get a lot of shots through. He halted good Colorado chances on a power play late in the third, and he stood firm the first eight minutes of overtime. But the officials confirmed the call, ruling Lehkonen had “a significant presence in the crease and made incidental contact” with Ingram, according to a statement. “Our forecheck wasn’t as effective as it was in Game 1 (in) the first period, and we wanted to make sure we were getting up and turning pucks over and spending some time in the offensive zone,” the coach said. “They got a few good opportunities, but we were able to weather it,” Makar said. If they’re going to reach that peak, Game 2 is the type of game they’ll need to continue to win: one in which players created their own luck and worked for their own breaks. But the Predators showed that, unlike in Game 1’s 7-2 Colorado victory, an early goal wouldn’t lead to a blowout. Logan O’Connor — a healthy scratch in Game 1 — jumped to let the puck fly toward the net and blocked Ingram’s vision in the process. “Let’s fucking go,” he said to Bowen Byram as the defenseman skated toward him to celebrate. Makar had 12 shots on the night, a franchise record for a playoff game, and he had another 10 shot attempts blocked. “We were able to get a lucky one in overtime.”

In his fifth NHL game, his second game and first-ever start in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Nashville Predators rookie goalie Connor Ingram made 49 straight ...

"He made a nice play," Ingram said. "He changed the angle a lot before he let it go. "And that's the beauty of playoffs. "… I know what he's capable of, and I think we all saw it tonight. "I think when hockey's taken away from probably any of us, for whatever reason, lots of times you miss it and understand how great of an opportunity you have to play in the best league in the world, play a sport that you love," Hynes said. MacKinnon flew down the left wing and fired a rocket past Ingram's blocker, and Ball Arena erupted. Allowing a goal on the first shot he faced could have been crushing. Each goal Ingram allowed went in off a teammate. I think against a high-powered offensive team, you're going to need excellent goaltending to win games, and he certainly provided that tonight." Ingram spent most of this season with Milwaukee of the AHL, going 30-17-7 with a 2.70 goals-against average, a .915 save percentage. The Athletic reported Ingram spent 40 days in a mental health treatment center in California, where doctors diagnosed obsessive compulsive disorder that led to anxiety, drinking and other issues. It was a bitter ending to an unbelievable, inspiring performance.

Collectively, the Colorado Avalanche have one of the deepest rosters in the NHL. Gabriel Landeskog, Cale Makar, Mikko Rananen and Nathan MacKinnon lead the ...

The Broncos came back in 2013 and were the best thing in all of sports. The Avalanche of the late 1990s and early 2000s experienced multiple playoff exits before winning again in 2001. The current Avalanche know they were embarrassed against the Golden Knights last season. The Broncos responded by winning back-to-back Super Bowls in 1997 and 1998. The Broncos had another upset playoff loss in 2012. The Nordiques were favorites but were upset by the Rangers.

Colorado Avalanche center Nico Sturm (78), right, celebrates with Cale Maker (8) after Maker scored the game winning overtime goal against the Nashville ...

And the stingier Ingram got, the more Avs shots that went for naught, the more ripe this one looked for petty thievery. When Smashville dared the NHL’s prettiest team to wrestle in the mud, the Avs threw on a singlet and got after it. And it was largely thanks to Ingram between the pipes. And, eventually, most of the time, the hockey gods are going to reward you for that hard work.” Wasn’t enough. Wasn’t enough.

Cale Makar scored 8:31 into overtime and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Nashville Predators 2-1 on Thursday night in Denver to take a 2-0 lead in their ...

He has a shutout streak of 114 minutes and 59 seconds, and he has stopped 54 of 55 shots he has faced in the series. Markstrom has stopped 37 of 38 shots in the series. New York's Igor Shesterkin followed up his 79-save performance in Game 1 by making 39 stops in Game 2. The rebound came to Makar in the slot, and his wrister gave the Avalanche a two-game edge in the series. The Avalanche held the Predators to 15 shots after the first period and dominated chances in the third period and overtime. It was Makar's second goal of the postseason.

Back in Makar's hometown of Calgary, his dad, Gary, let out an adrenaline-fueled yell after the Avalanche defenseman scored in overtime.

“Because of his quickness, movement and lateral ability, he finds a way to get a lot of shots through. He halted good Colorado chances on a power play late in the third, and he stood firm the first eight minutes of overtime. “As the game went on, we got better and better at getting to the net and trying to get in his eyes. But the officials confirmed the call, ruling Lehkonen had “a significant presence in the crease and made incidental contact” with Ingram, according to a statement. “They got a few good opportunities, but we were able to weather it,” Makar said. The Predators all of a sudden had nearly two minutes of five-on-three power-play time. The ice tilted in Colorado’s way starting in the second, but the Avalanche couldn’t capitalize on three power plays. Logan O’Connor — a healthy scratch in Game 1 — jumped to let the puck fly toward the net and blocked Ingram’s vision in the process. Makar had 12 shots on the night, a franchise record for a playoff game, and he had another 10 shot attempts blocked. But the Predators showed that, unlike in Game 1’s 7-2 Colorado victory, an early goal wouldn’t lead to a blowout. “Let’s fucking go,” he said to Bowen Byram as the defenseman skated toward him to celebrate. “We were able to get a lucky one in overtime.”

From UMass to the NHL Playoffs, Makar has proven that no moment is too big for him.

The legend of Cale Makar was forged in countless big games at UMass before growing tenfold under the bright lights of the NHL playoffs, and last night’s OT winner was just another magical moment in what looks to be a Hall of Fame career for a special player who clearly has the so-called “clutch gene.” Both his skillset and his mindset proved to everyone how advanced he was for his age, and it was no surprise to any UMass fan that Makar was quickly trusted to wear an “A” on his sweater as an assistant captain in just his second full season in the NHL. Scoring or assisting on goals in big moments moved from a surprise to the expectation, as it became clear that the Avs new star was a rookie in name only. This sparked UMass to sweep BC the following night in Chestnut Hill and win five of its final seven games, running away from a close chase and clinching the first regular season Hockey East title in program history. Down 2-0 to start the third period, Makar assisted on a power play goal a minute in to pull the Minutemen within one, setting the stage for a moment that is seared into the memory of every UMass fan. They shattered the school record for wins with 31, eclipsing the mark set in Jon Quick’s last year on campus of 21, while Makar won the Hobey Baker Award as the nation’s top college hockey player.

Colorado Avalanche center Nico Sturm (78), right, celebrates with Cale Maker (8) after Maker scored the game winning overtime goal against the Nashville ...

The kind of game where a presumed favorite takes a sucker punch to the spleen. “He was definitely ready to go,” Colorado goalie Darcy Kuemper, who turned away 25 of 26 Preds shots, said of his counterpart, “(and) made it tough on our shooters. When Smashville dared the NHL’s prettiest team to wrestle in the mud, the Avs threw on a singlet and got after it. And it was thanks largely to Ingram between the pipes. And, eventually, most of the time, the hockey gods are going to reward you for that hard work.” Most of the time.

The Avalanche swept Games 1 and 2 in different fashions at Ball Arena and now looks to move one win from advancing to the second round after Saturday's game ...

If the Avs again allow no more than two goals in Game 3, they’ll likely win based on the 96 shots and nine goals they have generated thus far. Colorado doesn’t want Ingram to gain any more confidence that he can steal a game — as he nearly did in Game 2. The arena sits within a pitching wedge of Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, the world-famous honky-tonk on the Broadway strip, and it gets rockin’. The Avs have to weather the first 10 minutes and try to gain a lead or dominate the puck as they did throughout the first two games of the series.

“Don't start writing until the first period is over!” I told myself as I sat down at the laptop. I wanted to wait and see which Nashville Predators team ...

Failure to do that, even with Ingram on a heater and controlling the pace of the game, will result in failure overall. As much as it made everyone feel better to point out that even after losing 7-2 in Game 1 that the series was sitting at just 1-0, after losing 2-1 in Game 2, the series is sitting at 2-0 and Colorado is in the driver’s seat. The missing ingredient is having more confidence in your offense and getting those defenders to join in on the attack. My biggest complaint was that the Predators didn’t seem to ever get set up on either of the power plays. The question was whether or not the team that came out to start the first period followed that game plan. The Predators spent an entire season establishing their identity as a physical team that plays a full 60-minute game, finishes all of their checks, forechecks aggressively, and forces teams to think twice about going into the corners or entering the zone.

It didn't matter when the Colorado Avalanche blew out the Nashville Predators 7-2 in Game 1, scoring five goals in the opening frame to chase temporary ...

You can contrast that with the lack of it on the other bench, which is something that has come into play—particularly in Game 1. It’s precisely this point where Nashville is, the place where Colorado once was, that serves to delineate the trajectory of these two teams. Our approach is something that you have to start with,” Nazem Kadri said on Friday. “In the playoffs, it’s easy to get sidetracked or anxious or whatever the case may be. I can safely say, in my years with and around the franchise, I’ve never seen an Avalanche team so dedicated to that end. “We’ve held off on Saros, but it’s prepared. #PredsHead Coach John Hynes says goaltender Juuse Saros (lower-body) “will not be in” for Game 3.