For the first time since 2019, the Ottawa Senators defeated the Colorado Avalanche in regulation. They put the puck in the back of the net five times in a 5–2 win.

Colorado played far from its best game of the season and was behind the eight ball all evening long. Compared to previous matchups between these two, it was a low-drama affair with little scoring and few chances.

View From the Mountaintop

Through the first two periods, the Avalanche were sluggish and a shell of themselves. They registered only eight shots on net. On top of that, they only had 15 shot attempts. Eight total shots were the lowest through two periods this season. The Avs registered their lowest shot attempts in over a decade with 15, since they started tracking the stat. After a solid get-right game on Sunday in Toronto, when they registered nearly 20 shots alone in the first period, it was a unique environment for Colorado.

A lot of their issues just came with moving the puck. There were far too many turnovers and struggles to even get things going. In this “slow” streak for the Avs, it’s been a common problem. It’s been demonstrated in years past as well. Luckily, Colorado is always ahead of everyone else and can afford to make mistakes. But as it becomes crunch time, the organization has to find a way to work through it. Wednesday’s game didn’t even feature a single power play for the visitors, where surely more puck issues would’ve arisen.

Despite their struggles offensively, the Avalanche got a ton of help from their netminder. Mackenzie Blackwood was stellar with some key saves to keep it close. His best two saves came on a Sens power play, where he denied Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle with some big pushes. The final stat line saw him make 18 saves, continuing to build his game up after a slow start. If there’s anything to nitpick about his game, it was the second goal he gave up to Ridley Greig just seconds after Parker Kelly equalized the game against his former team. The puck bounced awkwardly off the end boards, and Blackwood, trying to play it, ended up in no-man’s-land.

Up Next

Colorado continues on against the Montreal Canadiens in less than 24 hours’ time. Puck drop is at 5:00 p.m. MT, in what will be an awesome jersey matchup with the Avs donning their Quebec Nordiques throwback jerseys. Altitude Sports will broadcast the game.