Perhaps Sunday marked the Avs getting their mojo back after a roller-coaster January marked by a 7-6-2 record and the blockbuster trade of Mikko Rantanen to Carolina.
The Avs weathered a back-and-forth opening period to pull away for a 2-0 victory over the Flyers at Ball Arena. Samuel Girard’s goal put the Avs ahead, Nathan MacKinnon’s power-play netter gave them cushion and Mackenzie Blackwood posted a second straight shutout as Colorado won consecutive games for the first time in a month.
Philadelphia controlled the momentum early, putting up the game’s first six shots before Colorado finally started to find its footing.
The Avs had several good looks in the opening period, but Flyers goalie Samuel Ersson turned them away each time and Blackwood also stopped 10 shots as the the teams took a 0-0 score into the intermission.
In the second, Colorado picked up where it left off, beating the Flyers to loose pucks and doing a much better job of controlling possession than the Avs did in the opening minutes of the game. They continued to press Ersson, but he stood his ground, including stuffing what looked like a sure goal by Martin Necas.
The recently acquired center was perched in front of the crease on the weak side of the net, but Ersson slid over and stuffed the attempt to keep it scoreless after MacKinnon’s threaded pass that found Necas’ stick.
A couple minutes later, Philadelphia had a chance to take the lead with a two-on-one rush but couldn’t covert as Scott Laughton’s errant shot went wide right. Colorado immediately gained possession and pushed the puck up ice.
Casey Mittelstadt skated with the puck down the left side and found Girard streaking down a void in the center of the ice. Girard took the pass, made a slick move to bypass the defender in front of them and then ripped off a slap shot that beat Ersson on the right side of the net to make it 1-0.
Colorado kept up the pressure following Girard’s goal, while Blackwood continued to stonewall.
With four minutes left in the period, a clean game to that point finally saw its first penalty. A hooking call on the Flyers resulted in a 2-0 lead for the Avs after MacKinnon wristed one home from the left faceoff circle that beat Ersson in the top right shelf. The score was assisted by Cale Makar, while Jonathan Drouin screened Ersson’s vision in front of the net.
In the third, the Avs had multiple chances to extend the lead to three, but it was no matter. The defense played well, limiting Philadelphia’s clean looks and killing a power play, while Blackwood made six more saves to cement the win. That included preserving the shutout as the Flyers pulled the goalie for the final few minutes.
Colorado now heads on a three-city Canadian road trip this week to Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton before the NHL goes on break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. The Avs’ next home game is Feb. 26 vs. New Jersey.
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