Kadri, Burakovsky, Saad combine for five points, stay hot in 4-1 win

The Avalanche’s line alchemy has paid off this season following the addition of free-agent forward Brandon Saad from the Blackhawks. Paired with two of the previous offseason’s additions — Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky — Saad has finally completed what the Avalanche have been looking for over the last few years: A reliable second scoring line behind the powerhouse top line of Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog.

On Sunday, the Kadri-Burakovsky-Saad line was on a roll, scoring five points between the three players in the Avalanche’s easy, 4-1 victory over the Kings. Kadri and Burakovsky each had one goal — the first two of the game for the Avs — and one assist apiece, while Saad assisted on Burakovsky’s goal. In the Avs’ current three-game winning streak, that line has racked up seven points on Colorado’s eight total goals.

Their confidence is growing. After the win, Burakovsky described his assist on Kadri’s game-opening goal, and discussed how his line has continued to improve as they grow more familiar with each other.

“I just saw Naz in the corner; he was open and I was trying to get to the net. Naz had a really good game. Our line’s been finding our mojo a little bit and been really good lately. We just have to keep that up.”

Kadri’s line now has generated 53 points on the season, and, now in his second season with the team, he thinks they’re just finding their stride.

“We’ve been starting to generate more chemistry as of late, and that’s a tendency once you play more and more with each other. We’re feeling it now. We just have to continue to do the right things.”

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NEXT UP: Avalanche (16-8–2, 34 pts) vs. Ducks (8-15–6, 22 pts) | Tuesday, Mar. 16 at 7:00 p.m. (TV: ESPN+)

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TEAM NOTES

• The Avalanche held the Kings to 28 shots, extending their streak of games allowing 30 or fewer to a team-record 16 consecutive games.

• Colorado might finally be getting healthier. Defensemen Cale Makar and Bowen Byram have been skating this weekend, and both forward J.T. Compher and blue liner Conor Timmins aren’t considered too far behind them. However, the big question for the Avalanche — backup goaltender Pavel Francouz’s health — is as clouded as it has been all season. General manager Joe Sakic may have no choice but to actively hunt for trade partners within the week.

• With their win on Sunday, Colorado leapfrogged the Blues in the West division standings. Their 34 points sees them trailing division leader Vegas by three. The Golden Knights have won their past two games, while the Minnesota Wild — sandwiched between Vegas and Colorado — have won four in a row to stay one point ahead of the Avs.

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PLAYER NOTES

• Philipp Grubauer came within 6:07 of earning back-to-back shutouts when the Kings’ Kurtis MacDermid blasted one past him for the only Los Angeles goal Grubauer allowed in the brief, two-game series after shutting them out on Friday. He stopped 45-of-46 (97.8 percent) Los Angeles shots over the weekend and stands third in the NHL in goals-against average (1.91). His 15 wins place him second.

• Nathan MacKinnon extended his empty-net goal-scoring streak to two games; MacKinnon planted a puck into the Kings’ open net in both of their contests this weekend.

• Dan Renouf had a pair of assists on Sunday, his second and third career points in the NHL, and obviously, the first multi-point game in the 26-year-old Ontario native’s 10-game career.

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THE FINAL WORD

“Our commitment to defend… has been there all year. But I think we’re getting better at it. We’re more consistent, guys are noticing it on the bench and talking about it. When they’re bringing attention to it, that’s good leadership and good buy-in.” — Head coach Jared Bednar.

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INJURY WATCH

• Conor Timmins (upper-body injury) missed the Mar. 8 game.
• J.T. Compher (upper-body injury) missed the Mar. 6 game and has not played since.
• Bowen Byram (upper-body injury) was placed on injured reserve on Mar. 6.
• Cale Makar (upper-body injury) missed the Feb. 27 game and has not played since.
• Dennis Gilbert (facial injury, COVID-19 protocol) was placed on injured reserve on Feb. 20. He is expected to be out until at least late March.
• Erik Johnson (upper-body injury) left the Jan. 30 game and is week-to-week.
• Pavel Francouz (lower-body injury) has yet to play this season and remains on injured reserve.

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LAST NIGHT’S LINES

FORWARDS:
Top Line: LW Gabriel Landeskog, C Nathan MacKinnon, RW Mikko Rantanen
Second Line: LW Brandon Saad, C Nazem Kadri, RW Andre Burakovsky
Third Line:, LW Valeri Nichushkin, C Tyson Jost, RW Joonas Donskoi
Fourth Line: LW Matt Calvert, C Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, RW Logan O’Connor

DEFENSEMEN:
Top Pair: LD Jacob MacDonald, RD Samuel Girard
Second Pair: LD Ryan Graves, RD Devon Toews
Third Pair: LD Dan Renouf, RD Greg Pateryn

GOALTENDERS:
Starter: Philipp Grubauer

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