Avalanche rally past Golden Knights in third period

J.T. Compher and Nathan MacKinnon scored 26 seconds apart in the third period, and the Colorado Avalanche rallied for a 3-2 win against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.

Darcy Kuemper made 34 saves for the Avalanche (39-10-4), who have won three straight and five of their past six.
"The first period could have been a lot worse for us, in my opinion, and to get out of that with the score close was a big win for us in that department," Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. "[Kuemper] was great. He played like a big goalie today and looked confident again. That's the second game in a row here that he's been a big difference-maker for us."
Chandler Stephenson and Jonathan Marchessault scored, and Laurent Brossoit made 18 saves for the Golden Knights (29-20-4), who were coming off a 3-1 loss to the Arizona Coyotes on Friday and are 1-4-1 in their past six games.
"This is kind of how it's going for us, we fall asleep for a couple of minutes and we lose the game there," Marchessault said. "They score one goal and the next shift is important, and it's kind of a breakout play and they cash in again. They have some of the best players in the world out there, and they're the best team. This is the adversity we're facing, and we better get out of it."

Compher tied it 2-2 at 5:40 of the third period when Jack Johnson's point shot redirected off him in front.
MacKinnon then put Colorado ahead 3-2 at 6:06 with a one-timer from the top of the left circle off a pass from Cale Makar.
"We left it out there. That's exactly how we want to play, going into the third with the lead," Vegas coach Peter DeBoer said. "We gave them three shots in the third and they scored two. It was MacKinnon's first shot on net that he scored on after having 14 last night (in a 6-3 win against the Winnipeg Jets). We did a lot of really good things, except win. It's that fine line and when you're playing one of the elite teams, you have to do everything right."
Stephenson gave Vegas a 1-0 lead at 4:07 of the first period, taking a pass from Jack Eichel and beating Kuemper five-hole on a breakaway.
Andre Burakovsky tied it 1-1 at 7:10, scoring short side from the right circle three seconds after a power play expired. It was his second straight game with a goal since ending a 17-game drought.
"He was playing well before that, the goals just weren't there," MacKinnon said. "He's finding his scoring touch again. He can get really hot when he gets going, can really put it in the back of the net, and he's a really special player."

Marchessault put Vegas back in front 2-1 at 8:31 with a one-timer off a pass from Reilly Smith on a 2-on-1.
The Golden Knights outshot the Avalanche 15-6 in the first period.
"Vegas is going to come out hard in their building, they always do, they have a fast team," Bednar said. "We didn't manage the puck properly. We had way too many neutral-zone turnovers trying to force passes, too many plays at the blue line that we didn't manage the puck properly."
The Golden Knights played without forwards Max Pacioretty and Mattias Janmark, who were each injured in the loss to the Coyotes on Friday.
"We've had [adversity] all year with injuries and whatnot," Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb said. "We've handled it well in the past and we're in it again, and we just have to get back to basics. We played a good game, we had chances, and we have to bear down. They get a chance and they put it in the net. It's frustrating, but you put your work boots on, make sure your compete is there, and things will fall into place."