It didn’t take long for longtime Avalanche tough man Cody McLeod to sock it to his former club after being traded on Friday. McLeod didn’t even have to leave town before skating with his new club, Nashville, who was in Denver on Saturday to take on the Avalanche. McLeod had a fight and a goal in a 3-2 Predators win.
In 9.5 seasons with Colorado, McLeod made a name for himself as a scrappy forward never afraid to back down from a fight. He tussled his way to third in franchise history in penalty in minutes and the most in an Avalanche sweater with 1,359. He picked up both his first penalty minutes and his first goal not in burgundy and white in the second period. McLeod and veteran Jarome Iginla, both of whom have worn the “A” for Colorado, dropped the gloves 2:18 into the period.
“I love Iggy. We’re good friends, but on the ice it’s all business,” McLeod said postgame. “I thought we could use a spark right then.”
The Avs would jump out to a 2-0 lead shortly thereafter thanks to a goal from Francois Beauchemin. But McLeod wasn’t done.
The Beauchemin goal wasn’t enough to turn the tide after McLeod’s tussle with Iginla. At the 7:52 mark he scored his first Nashville goal, just his second of the season. The Predators responded in kind in the third period with a pair of goals from Mike Fisher and Filip Forsberg. The win moves Nashville to 4-0 on the season against Colorado; they’ll skate for the season sweep at home on Feb. 23.
Colorado concludes its four-game road trip on Tuesday against Chicago. The Blackhawks lead the Western Conference with 59 points, although Colorado picked up a win in Chicago in their last encounter. The overtime win was one of only four victories Colorado has since Dec. 1.
