OTTAWA — The Colorado Avalanche wasted no time asserting their dominance Thursday night, scoring four first-period goals en route to a commanding 5-1 victory over the playoff-hungry Ottawa Senators.
Nathan MacKinnon, Brock Nelson, with his first as a member of the Avalanche (42-25-3), Cale Makar and Joel Kiviranta each scored in the opening frame, chasing Linus Ullmark from the net 17:29 into the contest. Ullmark allowed four goals on 13 shots.
It marked the Senators' second straight loss following a six-game winning streak. Ottawa (36-27-5) is looking to hold on to the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Senators are three points ahead of Montreal, which holds the second wild-card spot, and is five points up on the New York Rangers.
Nelson scored his second of the night 1:54 into the middle frame after tipping an Artturi Lehkonen shot to beat Anton Forsberg, who allowed one goal on 19 shots in relief.
Scott Wedgewood made 15 saves with his shutout bid being ended by Dylan Cozens's power-play goal with 4:41 left in the game.
Takeaways
Senators: Cozens continues to shine since joining the Senators with points in six of his seven games (three goals, three assists).
Avalanche: The Avalanche had a slow first five minutes and then gained energy from MacKinnon’s opening goal.
Key moment
Ullmark struggled on Nelson’s first goal, a moment that seemed to drain the Senators' momentum and sap their energy.
Key stat
Nine players in the NHL have 50-plus points and 100-plus hits. Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Drake Batherson are three of them.
Up next
Senators: Ottawa heads to New Jersey to take on the Devils on Saturday.
Avalanche: Colorado will travel to Montreal to take on the Canadiens on Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 20, 2025.
Lisa Wallace, The Canadian Press