St Louis, MO– Colorado escaped St. Louis with a 4-3 win.
New goaltender Devin Dubnyk was the star for the Avalanche with 31 saves.
Dubnyk was traded from the San Jose Sharks on Saturday but looked right at home in his debut.
With a 3-goal second period from the Avalanche, the Blues could not come back.
The Avalanche set the tone first with a goal by Pierre-Edouard Bellemare off a fantastic pass from Liam O’Brian. A few minutes later, the Blues answered on a powerplay goal by Vince Dunn on a slap pass from Tyler Bozak.
Then came the second period, when the Avalanche dominated, and Jordan Bennington could not keep up. J.T. Compher tapped it in after a shot from O’Brian. Mikko Rantanen sniped it on the power play, and Brandon Saad found the opening in the slot to put the Avalanche up 4-1.
The Avalanche rarely let the Blues out of their own zone in the second period, controlling the puck.
Blues started the third period strong, but still could not get through Dubnyk. At 5 minutes in, the Blues had life, as Mike Hoffman bounced the puck off Dubnyk’s back into the goal. bounces
After that goal, Dubnyk stopped the Blues on multiple open shots. Dubnyk was just willing the puck to stay out, shutting down the Blues. The Avalanche were called for delay of game, and the Blues pounced. Hoffman scored again, sniping from the left face-off circle to bring the Blues within 1 goal. Blues pulled Bennington with 1 minute left and had numerous chances, but Dubnyk refused to lose.
The Avalanche look to continue their hot streak, winning their fourth straight. They are 17-2-1 since March 10, the best 20-game stretch in franchise history.
Up Next
Los Angeles Kings @ Avalanche, Friday, April 16, Ball arena
Blues @ Arizona Coyotes, Saturday, April 17, Gila River Arena
