Alex Bader
The Minnesota Wild's comeback against the Colorado Avalanche fell short in the shootout and saw their three-game win streak get snapped. Colorado improved to 14 wins in a row on home ice and looked lethal on the power-play.
The Wild had the better of 5-on-5 play throughout the game, but they gave Colorado nearly two minutes of a 5-on-3 late in the first period that ultimately cost them the game.
They did a great job at battling back in the second and third period. They forced the overtime and deserved to get a point out of the game.
Kaprizov took the overturned call personally and he looked dangerous in the final moments of the game. He has been on fire lately and the Wild will need his continued contribution if they wish to fight for the playoffs.
Fiala is another player who has had a fire underneath him lately and the addition of Boldy to his line has made an immediate impact on his game. He is playing with determination and energy.
Kahkonen has continued to look great in the crease during Talbot's absence and hopefully when Talbot returns he has earned more starting opportunities because he has proven it so far. He held one of the league's highest scoring teams to just 3 goals on 38 shots.
Game Recap:
The start of the game saw the Wild have some chances, but the Avalanche had more chances and Kahkonen had to make several great saves.
It looked like the Wild would escape the first period tied which would have been a win for Minnesota on the road in a tough environment.
However, with 4:41 left in the first period, the Avalanche got their first power-play of the game. Duhaime got called for tripping that sent the league's best power-play team on to the power-play.
Then, Hartman took a hooking penalty and the Avalanche had a 5-on-3 man advantage for 1:44.
It didn't take long for them to strike, with 4:03 left in the period the Avalanche scored on the power-play to take the lead,1-0.
As the Hartman penalty expired, Newhook scored to give Colorado a two-goal lead and all the momentum.
Minnesota went into the second period with their work cut out for them, they were down 2-0 and had been outplayed so far.
They needed to find their legs if they wished to make a come back.
Fiala scored right off the bat to get the Wild within one goal, 33 seconds into the second period.
It was Fiala's 100th career goal, he is also on a 6-game point streak.
However, the Wild's momentum was short-lived. Foligno was called for tripping which put the Avalanche back onto the power-play.
The Wild killed the penalty and then got rewarded with their first power-play of the game.
Minnesota couldn't capitalize on the power-play.
Kuemper went down after Greenway ran into him. Kuemper left the game after trying to stay in.
With seven minutes left in the second period, Colorado was given another power-play on a Hartman delay of game penalty.
Minnesota killed the penalty.
With 1:24 left in the second period, the Wild had a power-play opportunity and a chance to tie the game.
The Wild came very close to tying the game but missed their chances. They went into the third period down by one and started the third period with 36 seconds on the power-play.
They needed a big third period to complete the comeback in the mile-high city.
The Wild couldn't get anything positive with their short power-play to start the third.
Minnesota continued to fight and battle back. With 13 minutes left, Kaprizov tied the game, 2-2. Kaprizov brushed off a check and scored from a Zuccarello pass.
Kaprizov is now on a 6-game point streak, he has 12 goals and 32 points in the last 19 games.
With just over 10 minutes left, the game was still tied.
Minnesota was playing with more energy and intensity that Colorado couldn't match.
With 3:32 left in the game, MacKinnon scored to give Colorado the 3-2 lead.
It was called no goal on the ice because the puck got stuck in the pad or skate of Kahkonen, but his pad was in the net and after review, the play was called a good goal.
It was called a good goal even though you never see the puck cross the goal line. There was not enough evidence to overturn the no-goal call so the fact that it was overturned was crazy.
After a hard effort battling back, the Wild found themselves down by a goal with little time left to play.
The Wild took the overturned call personally and went right back to work.
Kahkonen went to the bench and seven seconds later, Kaprizov tied the game again with his second goal of the game.
It was the 11th goal with an extra attacker for the Wild, no one is better in the league.
The two top teams in the West in points percentage went to overtime to decide the winner. The Wild are 7-2 in overtime and Colorado is 4-3.
Both teams had chances in overtime, but neither team could break the seal so a shootout would decide the winner in Colorado.
Zuccarello missed.
MacKinnon missed.
Fiala missed.
Rantanen scored.
Kaprizov needed to score to keep it alive and his shot was denied.
Minnesota fell to Colorado in the shootout but picked up an important point on the road.
They face the Chicago Blackhawks this weekend for a series of back-to-back games including at home on Saturday on Hockey Day in Minnesota.
What's Next:
Minnesota Wild (22-10-3 47pts) vs. Chicago Blackhawks (15-18-5 35pts)
Friday, Jan. 21, 2022. Puck Drop at 7:30 p. m. central time
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