Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Logan O’Connor each had a goal and an assist as the Colorado Avalanche cruised to a 6-1 win over the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night in Saint Paul, Minn.
Ross Colton, Parker Kelly and Artturi Lehkonen added one goal apiece for Colorado, which bounced back from a 3-1 road loss to the Chicago Blackhawks one night earlier. Jonathan Drouin and Josh Manson each finished with two assists.
Goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 24 of 25 shots, helping the Avalanche improve to 8-1-1 in their past 10 games.
Zach Bogosian scored the lone goal for the Wild, whose four-game winning streak ended. Minnesota goaltender Filip Gustavsson gave up six goals on 27 shots.
O’Connor started the scoring 3:46 after the opening faceoff. He took a stretch pass from Manson and fired a wrist shot past Gustavsson’s glove.
Colorado grabbed a 2-0 lead with 3:08 to go in the first period. Colton took advantage of a giveaway by Wild defenseman Declan Chisholm and quickly punched a shot into the net.
The Wild pulled within 2-1 on a goal by Bogosian with 1:33 remaining in the first period. He scored on a wrist shot from the slot.
Rantanen made it 3-1 with seven minutes to go in the second period. The play marked his 25th goal — a milestone he has reached seven times in the past eight seasons.
The next Avalanche goal came from Kelly, who scored on a one-timer from the left circle at 4:23 of the third period.
A short-handed goal by Lehkonen increased Colorado’s lead to 5-1 at 7:42 of the third. He finished off a two-on-one break with a one-timer from the right circle.
MacKinnon capped the scoring at 8:48. He took a pass from Drouin near the blue line, carried the puck deeper into the offensive zone and fired a wrist shot into the net.
The two-point performance increased MacKinnon’s lead as the NHL’s top scorer. He has 68 points (15 goals, 53 assists) through 43 games, which puts him on pace for 130 points this season.
–Field Level Media
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