The Columbus Blue Jackets were supposed to be the easy game remaining on the Avalanche’s schedule. But similar to a loss against Montreal a week ago, Colorado struggled to get one up on a team outside the playoff picture.
The Jackets scored the first three goals, and the Avs could not claw back, falling 4-1 on Monday in their final regular season game against an Eastern Conference opponent.
Jackets goalie Daniil Tarasov was incredible all night, stopping 45 of 46 Colorado shots to earn the victory. The Avs outshot the opposition 18-4 in the third period but only got one past him to end the shutout bid.
Colorado’s lone goal came from Chris Wagner, who was called up ahead of the three-game road trip to replace Yakov Trenin. Wagner scored his first of the season early in the third period as the Avs attempted a comeback.
In the Avalanche’s end, Justus Annunen got the nod in goal, making 21 saves. The Avs’ backup goalie entered Saturday’s victory in relief of starter Alexandar Georgiev and helped Colorado successfully claw back from a two-goal deficit. Despite Georgiev’s struggles, head coach Jared Bednar confirmed earlier on Monday that this game was a scheduled start for Annunen. Colorado ends the road trip with a back-to-back starting Thursday in Minnesota. The expectation is for both goalies to each play one of those games.
