PHILADELPHIA — Cale Makar is the ultimate weapon when another team tries to park the bus.
It took the Colorado Avalanche a while to find a way through against the Philadelphia Flyers, but eventually, Makar scored twice in a 3-2 win Monday night at Wells Fargo Center.
“It felt like we were rolling offensively,” Makar said. “When the forwards are moving it around, it is fun for us as ‘D’ — we can move around up top and create space. I thought it was working well for us tonight.”
For much of the game, the Flyers tried to defend the Avalanche with a plan that looked like something Manchester City or Arsenal face in the English Premier League. The Flyers, missing a couple of key defensemen and playing their third-string goalie, retreated into a shell around their net and focused on blocking shots and taking away chances in the high-danger area.
After the Avs built what looked like a comfortable 3-0 lead, the Flyers did make a game of it. Owen Tippett scored on a long-range shot with 8:12 remaining in the third period, then Tyson Foerster dug the puck out from behind Justus Annunen for another one less than two minutes later.
Before that quick flurry, it was all Colorado. The Avs had 30 shot attempts in the first period, including 16 scoring chances according to Natural Stat Trick, but only 10 shots reached goalie Alexei Kolosov. They dominated possession of the puck, often with lengthy forays into the offensive zone.
“I really liked our game tonight for 52 minutes,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “The guys played hard. We were committed on the defensive side of it. We had a lot going on on the offensive side of it.”
Eventually, the dam broke in the second period — courtesy of Makar.
Devon Toews carried the puck into the offensive zone, then left it for Nathan MacKinnon. The reigning MVP found Makar cutting toward the middle of the ice, and the defensemen went right down Broad Street before ripping a wrist shot past Kolosov at 8:30 of the period.
Makar scored again from almost the same spot a little more than two minutes later, but it was waived off after Philadelphia challenged for goalie interference. No matter, his second goal of the night came later in the period on the power play.
The Avs have faced a couple of teams recently that tried to pressure them on the perimeter when they had the extra man. This was the opposite of that. Given plenty of time and space, the Avs pinged the puck around until Makar found a shooting lane at the top of the zone and blew one by Kolosov with the help of an Artturi Lehkonen screen.
“He got two, and I’m not sure about the third one that was disallowed,” Bednar said. “He got into some good areas on some nice plays on our team. … He picked the right spot to get up in the rush, especially on the entries into the o-zone.”
Colorado made it a 3-0 game after a weird sequence of penalties. MacKinnon was called for a pair of minors — tripping and then unsportsmanlike conduct for arguing about the trip. Then the Flyers took a pair of penalties in short succession that led to a 4-on-3 for the Avs.
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Casey Mittelstadt put home the rebound of a Mikko Rantanen shot shortly after the 4-on-3 ended. It ended up being the game-winning goal.
“We knew they were going to push,” Mittelstadt said. “We don’t want to give up those goals in the third, but I think our effort in the first 50 minutes or so made up for it.
Johnson honored: Former Avs defenseman Erik Johnson played in his 1,000th game Saturday against the Buffalo Sabres. The Flyers waited for 1,001 for a proper celebration, because Johnson spent 717 of those with the Avalanche. There was a video after warmups with congratulatory messages that included seven members of the current Avs roster.
Avs captain Gabe Landeskog took part in the ceremony, gifting Johnson a commemorative canvas print and a trip to Napa Valley. A second video just before the game included a message from former Broncos star Peyton Manning.
Scary scene: Referee Mitch Dunning was taken off the ice on a stretcher after a collision with Avs defenseman Josh Manson in the first period. Manson collided with Dunning near the offensive blue line. The NHL said Dunning was taken to a hospital for evaluation and that he was fully communicative, moving all of his extremities and all neurological signs were normal.
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