The Colorado Avalanche set about rebounding from the worst season in hockey’s shootout era with a resounding win at Madison Square Garden on Thursday. Colorado defeated the New York Rangers 4-2 on the back of a dominant performance by Semyon Varlamov.
The Russian netminder, now in his 10th NHL season, made 37 stops on 39 shots in the win.
Colorado jumped out to an early 2-0 lead thanks to Matt Duchene and Mikko Rantanen (power play), but Mika Zibanejad tallied a pair of power-play goals late in the first period to square things at the intermission.
Varlamov would go on lockdown from there, stopping the next 25 shots he faced.
Tyson Barrie had the lone goal of the second period, which proved to be the game-winner; Gabriel Landeskog scored on an empty net to seal things.
Colorado stays in the metro area on Saturday as they travel across the bridge to face the New Jersey Devils. Puck drop is at noon from Prudential Center.
