On Sunday night at the end of Game 1, it looked as though the Winnipeg Jets just might have what it takes to oust the Colorado Avalanche in their first round series. On Friday night at the end of Game 3, it became clear the Avalanche had flipped the script with their second consecutive win – this time 6-2. It’s turned a 1-0 series deficit into a 2-1 lead with another match at home to come.
Avalanche of Goals in 3rd Period Dooms Jets
Winnipeg will rue its chance to be the club ahead in the series 2-1. For 40 minutes, even though the contest was close, they looked like the slightly better side. Connor Hellebuyck played up to his Vezina Trophy-worthy reputation, and two second-period goals from Tyler Toffoli and Josh Morrissey gave the visiting Jets a 2-1 advantage.
But when it comes to the Avalanche, many, many teams can attest to how difficult it is to contain them. Bad penalties committed by Winnipeg in the third period and, quite simply, sensational offensive hockey by the hosts paved the way for a 6-2 score. Even though the dominance by the Avalanche lasted only one period, it was so thorough that the final score was fully deserved. Nathan MacKinnon, Valeri Nichushkin, Artturi Lehkonen, Ross Colton, and Devon Toews all tallied in the final 20 minutes, the latter in an empty net.
Compounding Winnipeg’s misery is Colorado goalie Alexandar Georgiev, who has gone from embarrassing play to quite solid. That doesn’t sound exciting, but with an offense like the Avalanche’s, “solid” goaltending will get you wins.
Game 4 is scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Colorado.
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