Avalanche Game 21 Recap: Just Like 2022

The Colorado Avalanche's winning tear continued with a home win over the Calgary Flames, and the brief two-game homestand continues with a meeting against a team who is very close to them: the Tampa Bay Lightning. This will always be special to us Avs fans; as we all know, the Avalanche defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games to win the Stanley Cup in 2022. Since then, however, the Bolts have won the last two meetings from last season, while the names have definitely changed from both sides since that iconic Cup Final took place.

The goalie matchup was Alexandar Georgiev vs Andrei Vasilevskiy, and I was glad that we would be facing Vasi, who had just returned after missing the first month and a half of the season. Avs actually led in shots to begin the game (it wouldn't happen for the rest of the night), and at 7:12, Ryan Johansen put it in past Vasi unassisted. Again, this is why I beamed when I learned we got Johansen. I knew how good he was in Nashville, and I figured he would bring that same talent to the Avs, and he hasn't disappointed. First power play of the game went to the Bolts, it was killed off. They had a second, that went kaput as well, and after 20, it was 1-0 for Colorado.

The second period saw Johansen score again, that's nine for this season to make it 2-0. Avs received a power play right after, and it cashed in. Cale Makar, the 2022 Conn Smythe Trophy winner, added a power play goal to go with the assist he had on Johansen's second goal, and that made it 3-0 for the Avalanche. By this point, however, Tampa Bay's shots increased vastly, but Georgiev continued to stop everything that was thrown at him. One did get past him in the heart of the period, but Jared Bednar challenged for offsides, and won the challenge. The shutout stayed intact, the Avs had a power play that became a two-man, but all of it was killed off. The Bolts continued poking at Georgiev, and at the final minute, they finally broke through. Anthony Cirelli scored with 31 seconds left, and the assists came from Victor Hedman and Nikita Kucherov.

Avs led 3-1 after 40 minutes, and the third period saw more pressure from the Lightning. They finally cracked Georgiev in the 2nd, and looked to do it in the third, but were unsuccessful. Vasilevskiy was pulled with about four minutes left, and after Nathan MacKinnon retrieved the puck, he passed it to Valeri Nichushkin, who put it in the empty net. For Nichushkin (who scored four goals in the 2022 Final), it was his 10th goal of the season and his eighth straight game with a point, and that made the final score, 4-1, in favor of the Avalanche.

It's like the 2022 Final never ended! For the first time since the evening of June 26, 2022, the Avalanche defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning, and as a result, the Avs have won seven of our last eight games! Our lead in the Central increases to four points, and with 30 points in the standings, only the New York Rangers, the Boston Bruins, and the Vegas Golden Knights have higher totals (all with 31 each). Another team effort win for the Avs; Johansen with a pair, Nichushkin continuing his point streak, Makar and MacKinnon with two points each, and Georgiev actually outdueling Vasilevskiy! This was an amazing win for the Avs, and it continues to show why the Avalanche are the most dangerous team in the league right now!

The Avalanche will head on the road for the next three games, beginning with a trip to Tempe to face the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday. This will be followed by a weekend double dip in Southern California; Anaheim on Saturday and Los Angeles on Sunday.

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