Varlamov stops 37 as Avs top Rangers at MSG
NEW YORK -- Semyon Varlamov made 37 saves as the Colorado Avalanche -- the NHL's worst team a season ago -- opened the 2017-18 schedule with a 4-2 victory against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night.
Varlamov had not won since Dec. 11, 2016, as he missed most of last season after undergoing hip surgery.
Matt Duchene, Tyson Barrie, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog scored for the Avalanche, who won just 22 games a year ago.
Mika Zibanejad had both Rangers goals and goaltender Henrik Lundqvist allowed three goals on 25 shots.
The teams combined for 11 power plays as the NHL is looking to crack down on slashing and interference penalties this season. There were nine slashing or interference infractions whistled during the game.
Duchene opened the scoring at 5:29 of the first period when he knocked in a loose puck in front of the net after a scramble created by linemates Nail Yakupov and Patrik Nemeth.
A little more than five minutes later, Rantanen's power-play goal extended the Avalanche lead to 2-0. He rifled a shot past Lundqvist after a setup from Nathan Mackinnon.
Zibanejad scored a pair of power-play goals in the final 2:32 of the period to pull the Rangers into a 2-all tie. The first came after a wild scramble near Varlamov's crease that allowed Kevin Shattenkirk to feed Zibanejad for a one-timer into a wide-open net while the second game with two seconds remaining in the period when Zibanejad rifled a shot over Varlamov's catching glove.
Barrie restored the Avalanche lead with 2:10 remaining in the second period. The defenseman joined the rush, accepted a pass from Alexander Kerfoot and wristed a shot just inside the post and past Lundqvist's blocker to make it 3-2 Avalanche.
Lundqvist went to the bench for an extra attacker with just under two minutes to play but were unable to generate a dangerous scoring chances while searching for the tying goal. Landeskog scored into the empty net with 2.6 seconds remaining to seal the victory.
NOTES: The Avalanche scratches included C Carl Soderberg, C Joe Colborne and D Nikita Zadorov. The trio is healthy and account for $9.5 million against the team's salary cap this year. ... The Avalanche were without D Sergei Boikov (shoulder) and LW A.J. Greer (concussion). ... Rangers rookie C Filip Chytil became the first 18-year-old to play for a team coached by Alain Vigneault. ... The Rangers scratched D Nick Holden and D Steven Kampfer. ... Rangers RW Jesper Fast (hip) is week-to-week.