MacKinnon, Barrie helps Avs beat Flames
Nathan MacKinnon and Tyson Barrie each had a goal and an assist in the Colorado Avalanche’s 5-2 victory over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night.
Matt Nieto and Nikita Zadorov also scored, and Semyon Varlamov made 30 saves. The Avalanche have won 11 of 12 home games to tighten the Western Conference playoff race.
Colorado tied Calgary with 73 points and moved within a point of Anaheim and St. Louis for the second wild card.
Mikael Backlund and Michael Frolik scored, and David Rittich stopped 29 shots for Calgary, which couldn’t rally with its leading scorer out for the last 11:55.
Johnny Gaudreau was tossed after drawing a high-sticking penalty on Colorado’s Blake Comeau. Gaudreau was given an unsportsmanlike minor penalty on the play and then assessed a game misconduct after arguing with the officials from the penalty box.
Colorado took control with a four-goal flurry in the second period that turned a 2-0 deficit into a two-goal lead. MacKinnon’s 29th midway through the period started it, Zadorov tied it 1:08 later, and Barrie gave Barrie gave the Avs a 32 lead with his seventh goal at 12:41.
Nieto made it 4-2 with 1:18 to go when Carl Soderberg threaded a pass through two defencemen to the front of the net for an easy tapin.
Duncan Siemens sealed it when he scored into an empty net with 17 seconds left in the game for his first NHL goal.
The Flames capitalized on a pair of Colorado turnovers to take an early two-goal. Backlund scored a short-handed goal at 14:19 of the first, and Frolik made it 2-0 with his 10th goal 2:41 into the second. UP NEXT Flames: Host the New York Rangers on Friday night.
Avalanche: Host Minnesota on Friday night.