Wild rally, beat Avalanche in shootout
SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- Charlie Coyle and Chris Stewart scored in a shootout as the Minnesota Wild won their second game in a row, coming from behind to beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 on Friday.
The Wild (11-8-3) got an early goal from Jason Zucker and a power-play goal from Nino Niederreiter, along with 28 saves from Alex Stalock in the win. It was the first home win of the season for Stalock, who is now 2-2-1 in his five starts. He stopped attempts by Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen in the shootout.
J.T. Compher and Blake Comeau scored in the first period for Colorado (11-8-2), which got 25 saves from Jonathan Bernier in its first meeting with Minnesota this season.
Minnesota needed just 73 seconds and one shot on goal to end Bernier's bid for a second consecutive shutout. Eric Staal zipped a pass from behind the net to Zucker between the circles, and Zucker's wrist shot beat the goalie on the glove side. It was Zucker's ninth goal in Minnesota's last nine games and his team-leading 12th of the season.
Colorado tied the game on a shorthanded goal by Compher, after Gabriel Landeskog pushed the puck out of the zone and a defensive turnover by the Wild created a breakaway. Compher's shot to the stick side beat Stalock. Compher has three goals this season and two of them have come with the Avs shorthanded.
Comeau gave Colorado a 2-1 lead late in the first, capping a 2-on-1 rush with Matt Nieto by finding a tiny gap between Stalock's glove and the right post. But Niederreiter re-tied the game on a power play early in the second. It was the sixth consecutive game with a goal for Niederreiter, tying a Minnesota franchise record.
Compher nearly got his second breakaway goal of the game midway through the third, but Stalock knocked down a snap shot with his glove, and Compher fanned on the rebound. Colorado had a pair of third-period power plays but failed to score on either. The Avs out-shot Minnesota 10-3 in the third, while Minnesota had a 6-0 shot advantage in the overtime.
NOTES: While most of the team flew to Minnesota late Thursday evening, Avalanche D Erik Johnson traveled on his own earlier in the day on Thanksgiving to spend more of the holiday with his family in the Minneapolis suburbs. ... The Wild wore their white sweaters at home on Friday for the first time this season. ... Avalanche G Seymon Varlamov did not make the trip to Minnesota. He practiced on Thursday but was scratched due to illness. Andrew Hammond served as the backup on Friday. ... The Wild battled the Avalanche in the franchise's first-ever playoff series in 2003. Minnesota won the seven-game series in overtime in Denver with Wild F Andrew Brunette beating Colorado G Patrick Roy for the series-winner.