San Jose, California — Joel Kiviranta netted two crucial goals in the third period as the Colorado Avalanche secured a 4-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night. Mackenzie Blackwood, facing his former team for the first time, delivered an impressive performance with 32 saves.

The Avalanche are enjoying a solid patch with five wins in their last seven matches, while the Sharks have struggled, losing six out of their last seven games.

Kiviranta’s first goal came during a fast counterattack at 13:06 in the third period, breaking a 2-2 tie and putting Colorado ahead. He subsequently added a second goal just a few minutes later, solidifying the Avalanche’s lead.

Both goaltenders in the matchup had an interesting backstory, as they were recently traded for one another. Alexandar Georgiev made 27 saves for the Sharks, while Kiviranta’s impressive performance stood out for Colorado.

The scoring opened for Colorado in the first period with a goal from Valeri Nichushkin. In the second period, Carl Grundstrom recorded his first goal since joining San Jose, and William Eklund quickly followed by putting the Sharks ahead. Luke Kunin assisted on both sharks’ goals, while Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar contributed two assists each for the Avalanche.

With a 2-1 deficit entering the final period, Colorado leveled the score thanks to a power-play goal from Mikko Rantanen midway through the third.

Key insights from the game indicate that Blackwood shone brightly against his former teammates, marking a triumphant return as the Avalanche’s new number one goaltender. On the other hand, the Sharks have struggled of late, conceding multiple goals in the third period in each of their last five outings. Head coach Ryan Warsofsky expressed pre-game frustrations about his team’s inability to secure wins against opponents.

A crucial moment of the match was when Colorado successfully defended against back-to-back San Jose power plays early in the third, before cashing in on a Sharks’ turnover in the offensive zone. Logan O’Connor delivered a assist to Kiviranta, who sped in from the left wing to score the decisive goal past Georgiev.

An important statistic from this matchup indicates that the Avalanche have achieved an impressive streak of 11 consecutive wins over the Sharks, marking their longest win streak against any single opponent.

Looking ahead, the Avalanche are set to face the Anaheim Ducks on Friday, while the Sharks will travel to Edmonton to face the Oilers on Saturday.