At this time of the year, teams will take the points any way they can get them.

Playing the Blackhawks for the second time in two days, the Colorado Avalanche looked exhausted, but held on long enough to get the game to overtime before losing by a score of 2-1. The crucial point they picked up extends their lead for the final wild card spot to two points, and they have Philipp Grubauer to thank for it. In the third period and overtime, the Avs were outshot 17-3 and looked like they had no gas left in the tank, but Grubauer was there to save them.

The Avalanche now get a few days to rest before the red hot Vegas Golden Knights head to Pepsi Center on Wednesday night.

What did we learn from this game?

  1. Jared Bednar made the decision to start Grubauer on the second half of the back to back, something that is not common in the NHL anymore, but his decision paid off. Grubauer was terrific and made several incredible stops in the third period just to get the game into extra time. Semyon Varlamov has traditionally dominated the Blackhawks in Chicago, which is one reason why many expected him to get the start, but Bednar stuck with the hot goalie and it looked to be the correct decision.
  2. For the second straight game, the Avs were handed a long 5-on-3, and for the second straight game, they converted, with Alexander Kerfoot deflecting in a Tyson Barrie point shot for Colorado’s only goal of the game.
  3. The Avs only managed to muster up three shots in the third period, and spent most of the period chasing in their own end. Without Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog, Bednar has significantly shortened the bench, and the top-end guys looked tired by the end of the game. Nathan MacKinnon didn’t have enough gas left in the tank to catch Duncan Keith on the game-winning goal after he played a team leading 24 minutes.
  4. Studies done in the past have shown that face-offs don’t necessarily have a ton of meaning in the grand scheme of things, but the Blackhawks first goal was proof that they’re important situationally. Artem Anisimov beat Carl Soderberg to win the face-off with only seven seconds remaining on their power play, and the Blackhawks quickly took advantage with a point shot deflection past Grubauer to tie the game. Faceoffs are something that has haunted the Avs all year long, and this particular one cost them.
  5. A few weeks back, Grubauer was sitting at the bottom of the NHL with a .890 save percentage. His last 11 games, however, have skyrocketed his save percentage, and he’s now up to a very respectable .914, passing Semyon Varlamov’s .910 on the way. Whether they get into the playoffs or not, Grubauer’s hot stretch is encouraging heading into next season.