Nathan MacKinnon faced adversity with a stick to the face but emerged as a crucial playmaker, involved in both of Colorado’s unconventional goals in the second period, and finished off his stellar performance with an empty-netter, marking his 50th career playoff goal. Meanwhile, Mackenzie Blackwood stood strong as the Colorado Avalanche’s goalie, marking his playoff debut with 23 saves. Despite having competed in 252 regular-season matches across three different teams over seven seasons, Blackwood made a memorable postseason start.
In the second period, two goals gave the Avalanche a decisive lead, leading to a 5-1 victory against the Dallas Stars in the first match of their first-round Western Conference playoff series on Saturday night. “I thought it was solid, really solid,” MacKinnon reflected on the start of the Avalanche’s eighth consecutive postseason. “We had a lot of good looks, a lot of attempts. Maybe hit the net a little bit more, but I thought we played a pretty solid two-way game.”
MacKinnon’s goal came late in the second period when his shot deflected off Stars defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin, catching an unusual trajectory past Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger. This happened during an extended power play due to a double minor penalty against the Stars, following MacKinnon being high-sticked in the face. Coach Jared Bednar praised MacKinnon’s strong defensive and offensive contributions, acknowledging the intense defensive focus from the opposition.
Blackwood made a series of crucial saves just before MacKinnon assisted on Artturi Lehkonen’s goal. The second goal featured Lehkonen chasing his own shot while falling after a net-front collision, with the puck deflecting off his lower left leg into the net’s top corner. After a review, officials confirmed no intentional foot movement from Lehkonen as he hit the ice alongside Mavrik Bourque.
Oettinger had limited options on both goals, as the Stars faced defeat in Game 1 of their eighth straight playoff series since 2022. Under Coach Pete DeBoer, the Stars haven’t had the best track record in series openers, losing all seven prior matches, most of which were home games. DeBoer remains hopeful, citing their resilience in bouncing back in previous series, focusing on overcoming the initial setback with a positive mindset.
The second game is scheduled for Monday night in Dallas before shifting to Denver. Devon Toews extended Colorado’s lead to 3-1 with just over seven minutes remaining. MacKinnon’s empty-net goal came shortly after, only seconds before Charlie Coyle found the back of the net.
This loss added to the Stars’ struggles, following a disappointing 0-5-2 run at the end of the regular season, after initially boasting an impressive home record of 28-5-3. Blackwood, acquired through one of Colorado’s eight mid-season trades, debuted alongside ten other new teammates. The netminder started his career with New Jersey and joined from San Jose in December, playing 37 games for the Avalanche since.
In other trade movements, Mikko Rantanen moved to the Carolina Hurricanes on January 24th, only to return west by March 7th in a deadline deal with the Stars, coming with a massive eight-year contract extension worth $96 million. In his playoff debut for Dallas, Rantanen, who previously registered 101 points in 81 playoff games with Colorado, managed three shots and a blocked shot over 18 minutes of ice time.
Oettinger faced 19 shots, including three crucial saves during Colorado’s two-man advantage in the first period resulting from two penalties against Cale Makar just 36 seconds apart. A penalty against Roope Hintz resulted in the Stars pulling a goal back with 13:15 remaining, narrowing the score to 2-1 before a rapid timeout call by DeBoer and subsequent power play concluded.
Coach Jared Bednar took home his 50th playoff victory with Colorado, matching a full regular season with this being his 82nd postseason game. This win allowed Bednar to surpass Bob Hartley for the most playoff wins in the organization’s history, both having secured the Stanley Cup — Bednar in 2022, and Hartley back in 2001.