Clutch Kadri comes through in the final minute to deliver Avs a win in Vegas
Feb 17, 2021, 6:53 AM
Nazem Kadri has “it;” the clutch gene, the unidentifiable extra gear that clicks in when the game is on the line — and he delivered a game-winner in the final minute on Tuesday when he chipped a loose puck over Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury to even the season series at one game apiece.
“Massive,” Kadri said after the game. “For us, that was an important victory, especially in regulation, down quite a few guys against a great team.”
The Avalanche’s win kept them only four points behind Vegas with two more games to go in this four-game set.
The Avalanche opened the scoring Tuesday when Nathan MacKinnon scored the game’s first goal off of a one-time feed by Mikko Rantanen, but Vegas tied the game in the second with Max Pacioretty’s power-play goal. Brandon Saad scored his sixth goal on the season to give the Avs a narrow lead at the second intermission, but once again, the Golden Knights were up to the task. Jonathan Marchessault, who always seems to give Colorado trouble, tied it at two, setting the stage for Kadri’s heroics.
Despite missing at least five significant skaters, the Avalanche have been the more aggressive team in each of the first two games of this series, using their speed to open up the ice; something they hope to continue on Saturday in Lake Tahoe, when the same two teams meet outdoors for a nationally televised tilt.
***
NEXT UP: Avalanche (8-4-1, 17 pts) vs. Golden Knights (10-3-1, 21 pts) in Lake Tahoe, Calif. | Saturday, Feb. 20 at 1:00 p.m. (TV: NBC)
***
TEAM NOTES
• The Avalanche could finally be getting reinforcements. On 104.3 The Fan’s “The Fan Late Night with Shawn Drotar” Tuesday night, reporter Adrian Dater said that the team expects that Cale Makar, Gabriel Landeskog, Tyson Jost and Kiefer Sherwood will all be available to play against Vegas on Saturday in Lake Tahoe.
• Colorado surrendered a rare power-play goal on Tuesday night when Max Pacioretty scored in the second period. The Avalanche came into the game with the NHL’s best penalty-kill unit (38-for-42, .905).
• Goaltender Peyton Jones was added to the roster to replace Hunter Miska, who was placed on the COVID-19 list. Jones, who turned 25 on Sunday, had been serving as the Colorado Eagles’ starting goaltender. Jones is Penn State’s all-time wins leader with 76.
• The NHL announced makeup dates for the Avalanche’s four postponed games, and were given new dates for three other games that were necessitated by the league’s ongoing challenge with COVID-19 and the subsequent shuffling of games across the league.
***
PLAYER NOTES
• Nathan MacKinnon, who scored the game’s opening goal on Tuesday, set a new Avalanche record with a shot in 232 consecutive games, breaking the previous record set by Hall-of-Famer and current GM Joe Sakic.
• Phillip Grubauer’s outstanding season continued on Tuesday. His eighth win of the season ties him for third-most in the league, while his goals-against average of 1.64 also ranks third and his .936 save percentage places him in fourth. With backup Pavel Francouz’s injury continuing to linger, the Avs have needed everything that they’ve gotten out of Grubauer. “He’s the backbone. He’s essentially driving the bus for us,” Nazem Kadri said after the game.
• Cale Makar was nearly able to play in Tuesday night’s game, but was scratched just after pre-game warmups. “He’s close,” said coach Jared Bednar.
• Sam Girard is expected to join the team on Sunday, pending a post-COVID physical that is scheduled for Thursday. He’s been out since Feb. 7.
***
THE FINAL WORD
“We just tried to keep it simple; told the D-men to get the puck, and we hopped on the rebound.” — Nazem Kadri, on his game-winner with only 37 seconds left on the clock on Tuesday.
***
INJURY WATCH
• Cale Makar (upper body) did not play on Feb. 16, but warmed up prior to the game, and is expected to play on Feb. 20.
• Kiefer Sherwood (unspecified) missed the Feb. 16 game.
• Hunter Miska (COVID-19 protocol) was added to the list on Feb. 15.
• Samuel Girard (COVID-19 protocol) was added to the list on Feb. 7.
• Gabriel Landeskog (COVID-19 protocol) was added to the list on Feb. 5.
• Tyson Jost (COVID-19 protocol) was added to the list on Feb. 5.
• Erik Johnson (upper-body injury) left the Jan. 30 game and is week-to-week.
• Matt Calvert (concussion symptoms) has not played since Jan. 24. On Jan. 28, coach Jared Bednar said he will be cautious regarding his timetable for return.
• Pavel Francouz (lower-body injury) has yet to play this season and remains on injured reserve.
***
LAST NIGHT’S LINES
FORWARDS:
Top Line: C Nathan MacKinnon, F Mikko Rantanen, F Brandon Saad
Second Line: C Nazem Kadri, F Joonas Donskoi, F Andre Burakovsky
Third Line:, C J.T. Compher, F Valeri Nichushkin, F Logan O’Connor
Fourth Line: C Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, F Sheldon Dries, F Jayson Megna
DEFENSEMEN:
Top Pair: Bowen Byram, Devon Toews
Second Pair: Dennis Gilbert, Conor Timmins
Third Pair: Ryan Graves, Jacob McDonald
GOALTENDERS:
Starter: Philipp Grubauer
