The Avalanche had a chance to jump into first place in the Western Conference with a victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Friday. Just hours after the Central Division-leading St. Louis Blues lost in regulation in New Jersey, the Avs suffered a similar defeat, losing 6-3 to the Canucks, ending their nine-game point streak and nine-game winning streak on the road.
Colorado (40-19-8) remains two points back of the Blues with a game in hand for first place.
Vancouver jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, beating Pavel Francouz twice on seven shots through the first 20 minutes. But the Avalanche took control offensively, cutting the lead in half off a goal from Erik Johnson.
The Avs had 18 shots in the first period but finished the game with just 32.
The Canucks added to their lead in the second to make it 3-1. But Colorado fought back to tie the game after Gabe Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin scored in the middle frame. The lead did not last long until Vancouver made it 4-3 and holding the Avs to zero goals in the third period.
Takeaways
Francouz surrendered five goals. For the first time in 14 games, Avs goalie Pavel Francouz gave up five goals. Francouz entered the week with a league-leading .929 save percentage but has since seen the number drop to .924 after consecutive losses.
Landeskog’s point streak continues. Landeskog had a goal and an assist to extend his point streak to seven games (four goals, 10 points). Landeskog scored his 20th of the season for the first sixth time in his career.
Avalanche will play back-to-back in California again. Two weekends ago, the Avs played on consecutive nights in the Golden State and came away with four points. On Sunday, Colorado will take on the San Jose Sharks before a third matchup in three weeks against the Los Angeles Kings the following night.
