Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche won Game 2 of the Western Conference Final on Thursday, thanks largely to the play of two of their best players.

Forward Nazem Kadri had everything to do with that surge, as he assisted on all three goals in that span for his team. Colorado notched three goals in just over two minutes in the early stages of period two, which turned out to be more than enough to win Game 2. That and stellar goaltending in the opening 20 minutes yielded a scoreless first period.

The Avs take a 2 - 0 series lead in what was probably the best executed game of the playoffs for far for Colorado. The 2nd line and the backup goaltender.

Nazem Kadri had three assists in a 2:04 span in the second period, backup Pavel Francouz stopped 24 shots for his second career playoff shutout and the ...

Kadri tied the franchise record for assists in a period. MacKinnon also got smacked in the face on a play. It didn't draw a penalty but drew plenty of boos from the crowd. The relentless pressure included a trip by Duncan Keith after the whistle. Artturi Lehkonen and Josh Manson scored 15 seconds apart to get things going in the second, with Mikko Rantanen adding another on Kadri's third assist. Francouz grew stronger with every save he made as he stepped in for Darcy Kuemper, who left Game 1 with an upper-body injury.

Pavel Francouz, Colorado's backup goaltender, entered Game 1 after the team's number one netminder, Darcy Kuemper, left with an injury. In that game, Francouz ...

Author of five novels for young adults, including The Scar Boys, Life in a Fishbowl, and Hard Wired. Lives in Littleton, Colorado with two middle school-age kids, one awesome wife, and three pets. If the Avalanche can maintain this high level of defensive play, they’re going to present Edmonton with a nearly insurmountable challenge in winning this series. The 16 penalty minutes served by the Oilers were four times more than the team served in Game 1. The Oilers played a much more physical brand of hockey in Game 2, often letting that style of play cross the line from physical to undisciplined. Colorado shut the Oilers out, winning the game 4-0, and taking a 2-0 lead in the seven-game series. Oilers defender Cody Ceci intercepted the puck and shot it, forcing Francouz to make a save from inside the face-off circle.

The Western Conference finals head north of the border as the Edmonton Oilers host the Colorado Avalance in a pivotal Game 3.

Five of Edmonton’s last seven have gone over this total with Oilers games averaging nine goals per contest since the second round began. In those contests, Edmonton secured the victory by an average of 3.25 goals. That success has continued into the playoffs, as Edmonton is 4-2 at home this postseason and won three straight games in its barn. They’re a perfect 5-0 this postseason and their stars have shown up in those games. Only four teams have successfully completed a 3-0 comeback in the NHL. - Oilers moneyline (+114)

Kadri earned three assists — all in a span of a couple of minutes — in Colorado's Game 2 win over Edmonton.

Oilers worry meter: 🥴🥴🥴🥴… Last time Edmonton had a messy Game 1, the Oilers rebounded to even the series. Seems like the Avalanche are in a pretty good place. But the Oilers took a timeout and tried to settle down, and opted to keep Mike Smith in net. The Avalanche forced the Oilers into the latter. What was the key: Colorado kept the pressure on the Oilers after it went ahead 3-0 in the second period. Not only were the shots in Colorado’s favor with him deployed (16-7 attempts), but Kadri’s team also generated 89.22 percent of the expected goals share, holding their opponents to just two scoring chances while generating 13 of their own.