The fifth time was not the charm.
The Colorado Avalanche dropped their fifth game in overtime in just their 13th game of the season, falling 3–2 to the San Jose Sharks, which saw two goals from Phillip Kurashev, including the game-winner.
It was a familiar theme for the Avalanche: dominate play, yet somehow still come out the loser. To their credit, Colorado was skating in the second half of a back-to-back after dispatching Vegas on Sunday, and San Jose’s youth and fresher legs became increasingly
evident as the afternoon wore on. The Sharks seized their opportunity against a fatigued Avs group, while Colorado, despite the fatigue, battled to secure a point.
Necas Strikes Early
Just two days removed from signing his new eight-year, $92 million contract extension, Martin Necas put the Avalanche on the board just 30 seconds into the game when he wristed a shot off a feed from Cale Makar. Colorado received a fortunate bounce as the puck deflected off a defender’s skate but it counted just the same to put Colorado up 1-0 in the first period.
Sharks Strike Back
Macklin Celebrini tied the game up for the Sharks when he beat Mackenzie Blackwood, who made his season debut for the Avalanche, with a blistering shot from the slot that hit top shelf. The first period ended in a 1-1 tie.
In the second period Kurashev scored his first of two goals to give the Sharks a one-goal lead. The 26-year-old basically skated through the zone with no resistance after Devon Toews was very clearly held by Alexander Wennberg near the blue line. However, no penalty was called and Kurashev came in and beat Blackwood with a wrister.
MacKinnon Awarded One
Before the end of the second frame Nathan MacKinnon appeared to have his 10th goal of the season, but it wasn’t awarded immediately. Breaking in alone, he was stopped on the initial chance before sliding the rebound across the line—only for officials to wave it off after determining the net had been dislodged by Sharks forward Jeff Skinner. Following review, the NHL reinstated the goal, ruling that Skinner had deliberately crashed into the net with the intent of knocking it off its moorings. The 2-2 tie was reinstated and held that way through regulation.
Overtime
Yet again 60 minutes weren’t enough to settle it, sending the Avalanche back into overtime. A quick turnover handed the Sharks an early look, but Blackwood turned it aside. MacKinnon recovered the puck deep in his own end and attempted to spring Nečas, only for the pass to sail off target. Moments later, officials compounded the chaos by missing a clear icing, and San Jose capitalized. Kurashev struck from the very same spot—and with the very same shot—that had beaten Blackwood earlier, sealing a 3–2 Sharks victory.
Takeaways
The Avs were clearly caught napping during the blown icing call, but the Sharks were ready for the moment and made the most of it. Bad call or not, you still have to make the save, and unfortunately, Blackwood, who finished with 20 saves, was unable to do so. That was a theme for the Avalanche who weren’t quite as mentally engaged as they were yesterday in Vegas.
San Jose (4-6-2) had plenty of opportunities to give the game away themselves, but Yaroslav Askarov did a solid job in net, turning away 36 shots en route to the win. The young Sharks squad played hard and really prevented Colorado from creating many dangerous chances while capitalizing on their own chances.
Upcoming
The Avalanche (7-1-5) are back at home on Tuesday to square off against the Tampa Bay Lightning (5-4-2) in a rematch of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final. Coverage kicks off at 7:30 p.m. local time from Ball Arena.
