Wild's goalie change flops in Game 2 against Avalanche

Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson. Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Wild's goalie change flops in Game 2 against Avalanche

By Clark Dalton | Last updated May 6, 2026 12:43 AM ET

The Minnesota Wild thought all they needed was a goalie change to shut down the Colorado Avalanche. They were wrong.

After losing 9-6 in Game 1, Wild head coach John Hynes announced goalie Filip Gustavsson would replace Jesper Wallstedt in Game 2. Before the matchup on Tuesday night, the coach said Gustavsson, who had not played since April 13, was "hungry" to get back on the ice.

The Avalanche served a hungry Gustavsson all right, but it wasn't a helping he enjoyed.

Avalanche dominated Wild in Game 2

The Avalanche once again flexed their offensive muscles in Game 2 at Ball Arena in Denver. They were much stronger than those of the Wild.

The Avalanche beat the Wild 5-2 to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. The competition will head to Minnesota for Game 3 on Saturday (9 p.m. ET, TNT/truTV/HBO Max).

Five Colorado skaters — center Martin Necas, left winger Gabriel Landeskog, center Nicolas Roy, center Nathan MacKinnon and right winger Valeri Nichushkin — scored on Tuesday. The Avalanche's offensive depth is one key reason they remain undefeated in the playoffs and feel poised to run away with this series. Per ESPN Insights, 16 of 18 Colorado skaters have a point in the postseason contest.

THE AVS OFFENSE IS ROLLING

16 of 18 skaters on Colorado have a point in this series vs. the Wild pic.twitter.com/hl4F9f06NP
— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) May 6, 2026

It's also a reason they're overpowering the Wild, no matter who's their goalie. Gustavsson had 18 saves on 22 attempts against Colorado (.818 save percentage, considered below average). That's not much better than Wallstedt did in Game 1, who had 34 saves on 42 attempts (.810 save percentage).

Gustavsson continues to struggle against Colorado. Entering Tuesday's matchup, the 2016 second-round pick was 3-7-1 against the Avalanche with a 3.56 goals-against average and an .898 save percentage (via StatMuse).

Perhaps Hynes will switch back to Wallstedt in Game 3, but that may not matter. The Wild thought they had the firepower to keep pace with the Avalanche, an offensive dynamo, after the barnburner in Game 1. But now they may already be running out of horsepower.

Clark Dalton

Clark Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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