Avalanche 3, Coyotes 1
DENVER -- Matt Duchene had a goal and an assist, Semyon Varlamov made 37 saves in his return to the net, and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Arizona Coyotes 3-1 on Monday night.
Mikhail Grigorenko also had a goal and an assist and Shawn Matthias scored for Colorado, which got a valuable two points against a struggling team.
The Avalanche (34-30-4) pulled even with Minnesota for the second wild card in the Western Conference. Both teams have 72 points but the Colorado has played one more game than the Wild .
The teams play one more game, March 26, in Denver.
Varlamov was back in goal after backing up Calvin Pickard for two games. Varlamov had struggled in the two prior games, and was pulled after allowing three goals on 12 first-period shots in a loss to Minnesota on Feb. 29.
Boyd Gordon scored for the Coyotes and Louis Domingue stopped 34 shots.
Arizona (28-32-6) is stumbling to the end of the season after an 8-2-4 stretch through mid-January. The Coyotes have lost eight of their last nine games and nine in a row on the road overall.
The teams traded chances in the first period but the Avalanche got the first goal at 9:17. Domingue made a save on Francois Beauchemin's shot from the board, but the puck trickled over him and Matthias dove to knock it in for his eighth of the season.
Duchene made it 2-0 with a power-play goal at 5:40 of the second period. It was his 28th of the season and established a career high for the center.
Grigorenko's fifth goal of the season at 5:37 of the third period gave the Avalanche some breathing room.
Gordon, who was playing his second game after missing 13 with an injury, spoiled the shutout with his first goal of the season at 8:47 to make it 3-1.
Domingue came off for an extra skater, and Arizona then went on the power play with 1:34 left but didn't score.
NOTES: Arizona LW Max Domi returned after serving a one-game suspension for instigating a fight in the final five minutes against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday. ... Avalanche D Eric Gelinas returned to the lineup after missing two games with a back issue. ... Arizona LW Alex Tanguay said he is not upset about being traded by Colorado last week. "They saw a better opportunity and wanted to make the move, which was fine," he said. "It's their team and I respect the decision. I'm not bitter, no hard feelings." ... Avalanche D Zach Redmond was in the lineup for the first time since Feb. 4. ... Coyotes C Kyle Chipchura went home to be with his wife, who is due to give birth. Domi returns to the Coyotes lineup after serving a one-game suspension for instigating a fight in the final five minutes of a game against the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday