DENVER — What was supposed to be a defensive battle between two of the NHL’s top defensive teams turned into an offensive showcase Sunday night, as the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Minnesota Wild 9-6 in their second-round playoff opener.
The game featured an incredible 14 different goal scorers, completely defying expectations for a matchup between teams known for their defensive prowess and elite goaltending.
Colorado netminder Scott Wedgewood allowed six goals — exceeding his total from the entire first-round sweep of Los Angeles by one. Meanwhile, Minnesota’s Jesper Wallstedt surrendered eight goals before an empty-net tally sealed the wild finish.
“It was a weird one,” commented Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar, who was the lone player to net multiple goals in the contest. The series continues Tuesday night at Ball Arena, with both clubs vowing to improve their defensive play.
Wild defenseman Jake Middleton echoed those sentiments, saying, “Weird game for sure. I mean, it’s the playoffs, you can’t be too surprised with what transpires.”
Avalanche center Nazem Kadri expressed his amazement at the goal-scoring barrage. “It was downright shocking to see so many goals,” Kadri noted. “We did not expect that kind of game at all. In fact, quite the opposite.”
Colorado, which allowed the fewest goals during the regular season, raced to a 3-0 advantage in less than seven minutes. However, Minnesota responded by scoring five of the following six goals, forcing the Avalanche to mount their own comeback effort.
“It felt like the puck, the puck just had eyes today for them,” Wallstedt reflected on Colorado’s offensive success.
Each period produced exactly five goals, creating an unprecedented scoring pace for teams known for defensive excellence.
“Yeah, it’s nothing either of us wants,” Wedgewood acknowledged. “Obviously we want a couple of them back on both sides. But you’ve got to give credit offenses. It’s playoff hockey.”
The President’s Trophy-winning Avalanche had opened their playoff run with consecutive 2-1 victories over Los Angeles, leading fans to expect another low-scoring affair.
Kadri found positive aspects in the high-scoring contest, suggesting Colorado’s week-long break after sweeping LA while Minnesota needed six games to eliminate Dallas may have contributed to the defensive struggles.
“Versatility,” Kadri explained regarding his team’s approach. “That’s what we always talk about, whether we’ve got to go high-flying offense or lock-down defense, I certainly feel comfortable in both scenarios and I know this team does as well.”
He added, “You’ve got to win different ways come playoff time. I think we were a little loose and a little rusty defensively, but we’ll get that tightened up. I think it’s just being off for a little while and defensively trying to get engaged in the game took a little longer than expected for us. But at the end of the day, we found a way to win. On the flip side, the offensive side was going.”
Colorado captain Gabe Landeskog acknowledged that while both teams are recognized for defense, “we’ve got some really good shooters on both teams.” Once the game became a shootout, survival became the primary objective.
“You have to find ways to win,” Landeskog stated. “We took the lead and they tied it back up and then they took the lead and we tied it back up, it was just back and forth, you’re just trying to find a way to win the hockey game, you’re trying to find a way to stop the bleeding. And you’re just trying to settle into the game.”
“It’s nice to be able to win games like this, not necessarily a coach’s dream or a player’s dream. We don’t want to give up six goals. So, it’s good to win this one, but we’ve got lots of things to clean up.”
Makar broke a 5-5 deadlock with an unassisted goal to open the third period, then added a crucial wrist shot with 2:54 remaining to make it 8-6. This performance came despite missing 17 minutes of the opening period due to a lower-body injury. Colorado defensemen combined for five goals in the contest.
“That’s Cale Makar doing Cale Makar things,” Landeskog praised his teammate’s effort.
Wild coach John Hynes summarized the chaotic nature of the game, saying, “Yeah, I mean, there’s a lot to unpack in this one. Was a bit of a helter-skelter game. Obviously you can tell by the score. We’ll take a look at some things and take some lessons out of this one. Be ready for Game 2.”
Despite the lopsided score, Hynes never considered removing Wallstedt from the game. “No, I thought Wally played … look what the score was,” Hynes explained. “And their guy was in for a lot of goals against, too.”
