The Colorado Avalanche are down 2-1 in their opening-round series against the Dallas Stars, but they don’t look like a team ready to throw in the towel. There is still a lot of hockey to be played between these two teams and the Avalanche might have a sneaky advantage.
Despite being down 2-1 in the series, Avalanche goalie Mackenzie Blackwood is performing at a very high level. According to moneypuck.com, Blackwood is leading playoff goalies with 4.4 goals saved above expected.
The Avalanche added Blackwood in a trade with the San Jose Sharks in early December, and he hasn’t disappointed yet in Colorado. In 37 regular season appearances after the trade, Blackwood picked up a 22-12-3 record with a .913 save percentage and 2.33 goals against average.
Through three games against the Stars, Blackwood has made 84 saves on 91 total shots faced. With just seven goals allowed, he has a .923 save percentage and is hoping for some offensive more offensive help.
The Avalanche stomped the Stars in Game 1 with a 5-1 win, Blackwood made 23 saves on 24 shots. The Stars took Games 2 and 3 in overtime, with Blackwood making 35 and 26 saves respectively.
Blackwood is facing a lot of rubber and doing everything he can to keep the Avalanche in their games against the Stars. Dallas is a solid defensive team, though, and are doing everything they can to keep offense from Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar to a minimum.
MacKinnon does have three goals through three games, but he’s the only Avalanche player with multiple tallies.
The Avalanche may be down, but they are far from out of this series. The return of Gabriel Landeskog could play a huge factor moving forward and everyone knows overtime hockey in the playoffs is a toss-up.
On the backs of Blackwood and a high-flying offense looking to hit a new stride, expect the Avalanche to make this series interesting the next time they hit the ice.
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