Rapid Recap: Avalanche 9, Kings 3
The Avalanche kept the winning going with a 9-3 win over the Kings
By
Sasha Kandrach
Nathan MacKinnon recorded a hat trick with his five-point (3G, 2A) outing. Cale Makar posted a four-point outing with a power-play strike and three assists.
Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Valeri Nichushkin also scored twice each, while Andre Burakovsky also scored. Bo Byram, Mikko Rantanen and Artturi Lehkonen each handed out two assists.
Darcy Kuemper made 49 saves on 50 shots in the victory.
THE SCORING:
1st Period:
2:54 - COL 1, LAK 0 -Nicolas Aube-Kubel put the Avalanche on board with a wrister from the left faceoff circle that beat Jonathan Quick through a screen and went five-hole. Erik Johnson and Bo Byram picked up the assists.
3:33 - COL 2, LAK 0 - Valeri Nichushkin doubled Colorado's lead 2-0 as he cleaned up a rebound on the backdoor. Byram collected his second assist of the night, while Artturi Lehkonen also handed out an assist.
10:56 - COL 3, LAK 0, PPG -From the left faceoff circle, Nathan MacKinnon hammered a one-timer shortside of Quick to extend the Colorado's lead 3-0. Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen registered the assists.
COL 4, LAK 0 - From the left faceoff circle, Nicolas Aube-Kubel wired a low shot past Cal Petersen to further Colorado's lead 4-0. Alex Newhook and Devon Toews tallied the assists.
2nd Period:
1:43 - COL 4, LAK 1 - Adrian Kempe buried a rebound from Troy Stecher's initial shot and Arthur Kayliyev's follow-up attempt for the Kings' first goal of the game.
10:40 - COL 4, LAK 2 -Alex Iafallo redirected a shot past Kuemper to cut LA's lead down 4-2. Jordan Spence and Blake Lizotte tallied the assists.
13:05 - COL 5, LAK 2 -Andre Burakovsky fired a one-timer from the left faceoff circle off Nathan MacKinnon's feed and past Peterson to boost the Avs' lead 5-2.
18:22 - COL 6, LAK 2, PPG - Cale Makar ripped a one-timer from the left circle over Petersen's glove to extend Colorado's lead 6-2. Nathan MacKinnon and Artturi Lehkonen gathered the assists.
3rd Period:
1:18 - COL 7, LAK 2 -Nathan MacKinnon scored his second goal of the game on a breakaway. Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen picked up the assists.
6:11 - COL 8, LAK 2 - Valeri Nichushkin drove to the net and roofed his shot in to give the Avalanche an 8-2 lead. Cale Makar registered the assist.
9:52 - COL 9, LAK 2 -Nathan MacKinnon completed the hat trick as he sipped a shot through Petersen from the slot. Andre Burakovsky notched the assist.
15:09 - COL 9, LAK 3 - Philip Danault beat Kuemper to trim LA's deficit down 9-3. Jordan Spence and Trevor Moore tallied the assists.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
The Avalanche were 2-for-2 on the power play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill.
GOALTENDING BATTLE:
Darcy Kuemper
made 29 saves on 32 shots for the Avalanche.
Jonathan Quick made 7 saves on 10 shots through 10:15 of play, while Cal Petersen made 19 saves on 25 shots for the Kings through 49:45 minutes.
NOTEBOOK:
Kuemper made his 51st start of the season and improved his record to 35-9-3 and has won his last four starts… With the goal, Aube-Kubel continues his career-high campaign as he tallied his 10th and 11th goals of the season… Nichushkin scored his 20th and 21st goals of the season and became the seventh player to hit the 20-goal mark this season… MacKinnon buried his 27th and 28th and 29th goals of the season and extended his goal streak to four games where the centerman has produced five goals in that span… Burakovsky scored his 21st goal of the season and set a new career high in doing so… Makar scored his 26th goal of the season and handed out three assists… The win marked Colorado's 53rd of the season and officially established a new franchise record.
NEXT GAME:
The Avalanche close out their back-to-back set as they host the New Jersey Devils Thursday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
