IT’S HOCKEY SEASON!
Rantanen, Donskoi each score two goals in win over Flames
Kaitlin Brinton, 24, of Colorado Springs, looks ready for the Avalanche to take on the Calgary Flames on Thursday in Colorado’s season opener at the Pepsi Center in downtown Denver. The Avs won 5- 3, with Mikko Rantanen and Joonas Donskoi each scoring twice.
In Game 1 of the 82- game regular season started Thursday, the Avalanche looked as if it could win them all. That won’t happen, of course, but the Avs began the season the way they and many others expected.
Considered one of the NHL’s top five teams, according to Las Vegas and others, Colorado looked sharp in all areas in defeating the Calgary Flames — the defending Western Conference regular- season champion — 5- 3 before a sold- out crowd at the Pepsi Center.
It was Colorado’s fifth- straight victory over Calgary dating back to last season. In the playoffs last spring, the No. 8- seeded Avs won the last four games of a first- round series to eliminate the Flames in five games.
Mikko Rantanen and newcomer Joonas Donskoi each had two goals for the Avs and J. T. Compher also scored. Goalie Philipp Grubauer was tremendous in the third period and rookie defenseman Cale Makar led Colorado in ice time in his NHL regular- season de
but.
Donskoi added an empty- net goal late in the third period to make Colorado 4- 0 in seasonopeners under coach Jared Bednar.
Colorado led 4- 3 entering the third period, scoring twice in each of the first two periods. The Avs held leads of 1- 0, 2- 1, 3- 2 and 4- 2 before the Flames struck 16 seconds after Colorado finally built a two- goal advantage.
On the first shift after Rantanen scored a power- play goal at 16: 51 of the second period for a 4- 2 lead, Flames defenseman Mark Giordano beat Grubauer with a near- side wrist shot from the left circle. So the Avs never built momentum on Rantanen’s second goal — a big one- timer from the left circle off a familiar cross- ice feed from Nathan MacKinnon.
The Avs generally dominated the first period, outshooting the visitors 14- 3. But the Flames scored on their first shot, when Sean Monahan threw the puck on net. The shot caromed off Avs forward Joonas Donskoi and behind Grubauer for the score.
Donskoi scored Colorado’s first goal when he slightly redirected Sam Girard’s slap shot from the point. Girard was originally credited with the goal but slow- motion replay proved Donskoi touched the puck.
Rantanen scored his first goal at 16: 08 of the second period for a 2- 1 lead. Linemate Gabe Landeksog set it up, first tapping a Flames clearing puck out of midair in the neutral zone for a turnover and then feeding Rantanen after driving into the offensive zone. Rantanen used a backhander to beat goalie David Rittich.
Compher got his goal 12: 22 into the second period to break a 2- 2 tie.