After trouncing the Edmonton Oilers 9–1 on Saturday night, the Colorado Avalanche beat the Vancouver Canucks 5–4 in an epic barn-burner of a game.

Observations from the Mountaintop

This may have been a victory, but it wasn’t always pretty. The Avalanche were tired, and it showed. They got sloppy with the puck on multiple occasions and paid the price. In the post-game, Coach Jared Bednar commented that many of the players looked like they were “lacking their legs” and skating slowly. But ultimately, the Avalanche emerged victorious.

Nathan MacKinnon had a four-point night on Saturday in Edmonton. Apparently that wasn’t enough for him because he earned five points against Vancouver. It began with back-to-back goals in the first period. The first one was a beautiful tic-tac-toe. Cale Makar brought the puck up the ice and then slipped it across the ice to Valeri Nichushkin, who fed it to MacKinnon, who put it in the back of the net.

MacKinnon then had assists on the next two goals, both of which were scored by Arturi Lehkonen.

He topped it off with an assist on the game-winning goal in overtime.

Gavin Brindley was everywhere, hustling nonstop. Midway through the third period, Tom Willander seemed to have no way of stopping Brindley except by holding him. The Avalanche then took the lead on the ensuing power play. Brindley’s persistence and tenacity earned him a shift in overtime. He wasted no time in scoring the game-winning goal.

Brindley is quickly proving he deserves a spot in the lineup. It’s hard to say who the coach will bench when Logan O’Connor returns, but if Gavin Brindley keeps playing the way he did tonight, he certainly will not be benched by the coach.

Up Next

The Avalanche head home to face the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night at Ball Arena. Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. MT. Watch on TNT, TruTV, or HBO Max.