National Hockey League
Colorado 4, Minnesota 3
When: 3:00 PM ET, Monday, January 17, 2022
Where: Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
Referees: Tom Chmielewski, Brandon Schrader
Linesmen: Matt MacPherson, Vaughan Rody
Attendance: 17565

Mikko Rantanen scored the only goal in the shootout and had a goal and an assist in regulation, Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and an assist and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Minnesota Wild 4-3 in Denver on Monday.

Pavel Francouz made 25 saves in relief of Darcy Kuemper and stopped all three in the shootout and Alex Newhook also scored for the Avalanche, who have won 14 straight home games.

Kirill Kaprizov had two goals, Kevin Fiala also scored, Mats Zuccarello had two assists and Kaapo Kahkonen stopped 35 shots and two more in the shootout.

Rantanen scored on Colorado's second attempt of the shootout and Francouz made a glove save on Kaprizov to seal the win.

Kuemper left the game after getting hit up high by Jordan Greenway midway through the second period. He was looked at by a trainer and initially stayed in the game but left on the order of the NHL's concussion spotter.

The Avalanche outshot Minnesota 16-8 in the first and got the only two goals of the period after the Wild took two penalties.

Brandon Duhaime and Ryan Hartman took minor penalties 16 seconds apart, giving Colorado a five-on-three advantage. The Avalanche cashed in 22 seconds later when Rantanen banked in a rebound off of Kahkonen at 15:57.

It was his 20th goal of the season.

Minnesota killed off Hartman's penalty, but four seconds later, Newhook's one-timer off a pass from Samuel Girard made it 2-0 at 17:39. It was his eighth of the season.

Fiala got one back for the Wild when he scored on a backhander just 33 seconds into the second period. It was his ninth of the season.

Kaprizov tied it at 6:46 of the third period, but Colorado went back ahead 3-2 at the 16:28 mark when MacKinnon's shot went into Kahkonen's pads. It was initially ruled no goal but overturned upon review. It was MacKinnon's ninth of the season.

Kaprizov tied it 41 seconds later with Kahkonen off for an extra skater. It was his 16th of the season.

Kuemper stopped 12 of the 13 shots he faced.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Minnesota   Colorado
Kirill Kaprizov 2 Points Nathan MacKinnon 2
Kirill Kaprizov 2 Goals Nathan MacKinnon 1
Mats Zuccarello 2 Assists Nathan MacKinnon 1
N/A Power Play Goals Mikko Rantanen 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Kaapo Kahkonen .921 Save Percentage Pavel Francouz .926
Kaapo Kahkonen 35 Saves Pavel Francouz 25
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Minnesota 40 3 0-2 3-4 19 37
Colorado 38 4 1-4 2-2 25 32
Upcoming Games
  • Colorado will play their next game on the road against Anaheim. The Avalanche have a W/L % of .680 after a win and .727 after a loss.
  • Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Chicago. The Wild have a W/L % of .667 after a win and .538 after a loss.