Going Wild: Avalanche Defeat Minnesota 5-2, Move Into Tie For Third Place in Central Division

A Wild Night

Ross Colton posted two goals and an assist to help the Avalanche defeat the Minnesota Wild 5-2 at Ball Arena on Friday. Oliver Kylington added a pair of assists while Valeri Nichushkin, Jonathan Drouin and Jack Drury each scored for the Avs. In net for Colorado, Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 18 of the 20 shots he faced.

"It was really nice to see [that] we're getting some contributions throughout our lineup here," Avalanche Head Coach Jared Bednar said.

With the win, the Avs improved to 35-24-2. Their 72 points put them in a tie with the Wild for third place in the Central Division.

How It Happened

Minnesota's Mats Zuccarello opened the scoring at 4:14 of the first period with a shot from the slot.

The Avs tied the game on the power play courtesy of Nichushkin's 12th goal of the year via a one-timer from the slot set up by Nathan MacKinnon's centering feed.

The Wild took a 2-1 lead on the power play at 17:42 of the first period when Vincent Hinostroza deflected Brock Faber's shot from the point.

At 8:57 of the second period, Drouin tied the game with his seventh goal of the season via a left-circle shot off the rush set up by a fantastic feed from Kylington.

Drury gave the Avs a 3-2 lead at 9:49 of the middle frame with his sixth goal of the season via a backhand shot from the left doorstep after picking up the puck behind the net.

"The Drury line was outstanding tonight," Bednar said. "And they [got] rewarded for their work."

Doubling the Avs' lead, Colton scored his 14th goal of the season with a one-timer from the slot set up by Kylington's feed at 14:39 of the second period.

"It feels good," Colton said after scoring. "I feel like as a line we were doing a lot of good things."

Colton scored his second goal of the game and 15th of the season with an empty-net tally at 19:52 of the third period to give the Avs a 5-2 lead. With the secondary assist on the goal, Blackwood picked up his first point with the Avalanche.

Next Up

The Avalanche host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday at 7 p.m. MT on Altitude and Altitude+.