Mikko Rantanen scored a hat trick and had two assists for the Colorado Avalanche in a 6-2 win against the host Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday.
Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and four assists and Scott Wedgewood made 25 saves for the Avalanche, who have won three straight games and four of their past five.
Cody Glass and Michael Bunting scored for the Penguins, who have lost two of their past three games after a four-game winning streak. Tristan Jarry made 21 saves.
MacKinnon gave Colorado a 1-0 lead at 6:31 of the first period. He hustled to get to a loose puck in the neutral zone to create a two-on-one and took it to the left faceoff dot before snapping it past Jarry’s left arm.
Rantanen, playing in his 600th NHL game, doubled the lead at 18:22. Cale Makar collected a loose puck in the left circle and dished a short feed to Rantanen in front, where he lifted it over Jarry’s right pad.
Rantanen pushed the lead to 3-0 at 5:46 of the second period. Calvin de Haan faked a shot from the blue line on a pass to Rantanen near the corner below the right circle, and Rantanen one-timed it home short side.
Glass got the Penguins on the board at 7:21 from the right circle off a feed from Evgeni Malkin, making it 3-1.
Bunting then narrowed the deficit to 3-2 at 18:53. Erik Karlsson sent a spinning pass from the corner to Bunting in front, and the latter roofed a wrist shot over Wedgewood blocker side.
Valeri Nichushkin took the puck down the right side and cut around Pittsburgh defenseman Marcus Pettersson to the front of the net, then slid the puck by Jarry’s right skate for a 4-2 lead at 3:23 of the third.
Artturi Lehkonen extended the advantage to 5-2 when Rantanen fed him in front for a wrist shot that beat Jarry blocker side at 12:21.
With Jarry pulled for an extra attacker, Rantanen completed his hat trick from the right circle into an empty net at 15:08.
–Field Level Media
