MacKinnon, Rantanen, Varlamov help Colorado cruise in St. Louis
AVALANCHE 4, BLUES 1
Against the only team ST. LOUIS it does not have a game in hand over in the tight Western Conference playoff race, the Avalanche used another method to separate itself from the St. Louis Blues on Thursday night.
The Avs just beat them fair and square in their own building, winning 4- 1 at the Scottrade Center behind outstanding performances from Colorado’s best players.
All four goals ( along with six assists) came from the Avs’ top line of center Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabe Landeskog, and goalie Semyon Varlamov ( 44 saves) was exceptional in holding leads that Colorado never relinquished.
“It’s a huge win,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “That’s a playofftype game, as close as you can get to the playoffs without being there.
“Our guys played with great urgency, good commitment and intensity. It was far from perfect, but when you play with that type of urgency and intensity, good things will happen to you.”
MacKinnon had two goals and an assist and Rantanen had two goals and two assists, scoring one goal off a brilliant stretch pass from Landeskog, who had three assists; and Varlamov shut the door at the other end as Colorado improved its points streak to nine games ( 6- 0- 3).
In the playoff race, the Avs climbed to 84 points, five more than the Blues, with 12 remaining games. Colorado ( 38- 24- 8) has played at least one fewer game than the handful of other teams seeking a wild- card berth. But at this rate, the Avs could catch Minnesota ( 85 points) for the third Central Division playoff slot.
“That was a big game,” Landeskog said. “We know there are 12 games left, but in our heads we’re going to make it. We already made up our minds about that a long time ago. And we keep believing, and we keep doing everything that we can every day to prepare ourselves and make sure we keep getting better as the season progresses.”
The Avs, who had lost 13 of their previous 15 games at the Scottrade Center, finished 2- 0 on the Central Division road trip. They won 5- 1 at Minnesota on Tuesday.
Varlamov might make his 16th consecutive appearance Friday night against Nashville at the Pepsi Center.
“This time of the year, you get a little tired,” Varlamov said after winning his 20th game of the season. “What I need to do is just try to recover as fast as I can. Tomorrow is a new day. I’ll have to forget about this game and then just look forward.”
MacKinnon gave the Avs a 2- 0 lead by scoring his 34th and 35th goals in the first period. His first one was a quick wrister from the left circle and the second a weakside rebound off Tyson Barrie’s shot from the point.
St. Louis got within 2- 1 at 9: 15 of the second period, when defenseman Joel Edmundson wristed the puck at the net through traffic from the point. Varlamov didn’t see it, and the building became energized. But Rantanen quieted the crowd seven minutes later, at 16: 29, when he accepted a long stretch pass from Landeskog and drove in on goalie Jake Allen from the right wing.
A Blues defenseman was closing in down the middle on the left- shooting Rantanen, so he used his backhand and beat Allen with a perfectly placed shot in the top corner for his 24th goal of the season.
Rantanen added an empty- net goal at 19: 18 of the third period, guaranteeing Colorado would not lose its sixth consecutive game at the Scottrade Center, and third this season.
“We were due,” MacKinnon said of winning in St. Louis. “We were feeling good after beating Minnesota. This is not an easy place to play, but we really capitalized on our chances.”
St. Louis outshot the Avs 45- 23, including 22- 6 in the third period.
“They played a good game. I think Varly really stole it for us. But that’s how it is. When teams are losing at home they press,” MacKinnon said. “When Varly is battling like that, he’s one of the best goalies in the league, if not the best. He’s really stepping up since Bernie’s been down, and Bernie did the same thing when Varly got hurt. It’s nice that we have two goalies that are exceptional.”