The Colorado Avalanche continued their recent domination of the Dallas Stars with a commanding 5-2 road victory on Thursday night. Led by two goals from Valeri Nichushkin, the defending Stanley Cup champions put together another superb performance to strengthen their lead atop the Central division standings.
Avalanche Offense Rolls Again Behind Nichushkin’s Brace
Valeri Nichushkin was the star of the show in Dallas, potting two goals to spearhead another prolific offensive performance from the Avalanche. His first came late in the opening frame when he buried a feed from Nathan MacKinnon on the power play to give Colorado a 2-1 lead heading into the first intermission. His second was an empty netter in the dying minutes to seal the result for the visitors.
Nichushkin spoke afterwards about the importance of the team’s disciplined approach against a desperate Stars outfit:
“We knew they would come out hard trying to make up ground in the standings. I thought we matched their intensity but also stuck to our structure and game plan for the full 60 minutes.”
Mikko Rantanen also found the back of the net for the Avalanche, with Devon Toews and Alex Newhook rounding out the scoring. It’s the 15th time in their past 17 outings that Colorado has notched at least four goals.
| Avalanche Goalscorers |
|---|
| Valeri Nichushkin (2) |
| Mikko Rantanen |
| Devon Toews |
| Alex Newhook |
The Avs victory pushes their record to 28-8-3 on the campaign as they continue to set the pace in the Western Conference.
Struggling Stars Stymied Again on Home Ice
It was another disappointing night for the home side, who dropped their third straight decision and remain stuck in a battle just to qualify for the postseason.
Dallas got goals from Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin but had no answers for Colorado’s relentless waves of speed and pressure. The loss leaves them six points back of the final wildcard berth in the West.
Head coach Peter DeBoer emphasized the need for greater resilience with the playoffs slipping away:
“We’re allowing too many goals right now and we aren’t scoring enough to keep up. We need to find a way to be tougher to play against and limit some of these chances against.”
The Stars have surrendered 17 goals during their current losing skid and sport a porous -31 goal differential on the season.
| Stars Goalscorers |
|---|
| Jamie Benn |
| Tyler Seguin |
Things don’t get any easier next time out either as the Stars stay home to welcome the East-leading Boston Bruins on Saturday night.
MacKinnon and Makar Dominate Yet Again
Nathan MacKinnon continued his MVP calibre campaign for the Avs, dishing out three assists to pad his league-leading points total. The superstar centre has now found the scoresheet in 26 of his past 27 appearances.
When asked about MacKinnon’s impact this year, head coach Jared Bednar emphasized just how vital he’s been:
“He’s taken his game to another level this season. We’re witnessing one of the most dominant individual seasons in recent memory. He drives our team in every area.”
Norris trophy frontrunner Cale Makar was also instrumental in the winning effort, logging 25:12 of ice time while also adding a pair of assists. He now has 50 points in just 39 games on the year.
| Key Contributor Stats |
|---|
| Nathan MacKinnon: 3 assists |
| Cale Makar: 25:12 TOI, 2 assists |
The Avalanche big guns have shown no signs of slowing down as they continue their quest to hoist a second straight Stanley Cup this June.
What’s Next
The schedule doesn’t get any easier for Dallas as they try to string some wins together and get back into the playoff race out West. Colorado meanwhile will look to keep their foot firmly planted on the gas pedal.
Both clubs are set to host the Boston Bruins in their next contests. The Avs will welcome the B’s to Denver on Wednesday night.
If Dallas continues to slide, speculation will heat up on the trade front. Names like Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin have already begun floating around the rumor mill with the deadline now less than two months away.
The Avalanche have very few flaws to address but will still be monitoring the market for depth additions as they seek to bolster their roster for another lengthy playoff run this Spring.
No matter what transpires in the coming days, one thing is clear – the Avalanche are still the class of the Western Conference and don’t appear ready to loosen their stranglehold on the top spot anytime soon. Thursday’s emphatic road victory was just the latest reminder of their dominance.
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