Duchene paces Avalanche past Coyotes
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Matt Duchene scored two goals, Rene Bourque added his first of the season and the Colorado Avalanche held on for a 3-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes Saturday night.
Duchene gave the Avalanche a two-goal lead that became one when Tobias Rieder lit the lamp on a breakaway with just over four minutes to play in the game. The Coyotes pulled goaltender Louis Domingue in the final minute but couldn't equalize.
Bourque, on a power play, knocked a fortunate bounce off the boards behind the net -- the puck sent in by Nathan McKinnon -- past Domingue to give the Avalanche a 2-1 lead. Calvin Pickard did his part with 23 saves, and the Avalanche snapped a brief two-game losing streak to improve to 4-3.
Duchene's goal at 11:24 of the third period was his team-leading fifth of the season.
The Avalanche penalty-kill unit thwarted the Coyotes four times without surrendering a goal and is 7-for-7 in its last two games.
Arizona (2-6) has 10 first-period goals this season, among the most in the NHL in that category. The Coyotes were playing at home for the first time since Oct. 15 after a six-game road trip to the East Coast which saw them lose five of those contests.
The Coyotes' Radim Vrbata opened the scoring with his fourth goal of the season, taking a pass from Max Domi and shooting the puck past Pickard at 14:57 of the first period.
Martin Hanzal started the play by fighting off a defender while handling the puck, then centering with a backhand to Domi. Pickard was in goal in favor of No. 1 goalie Semyon Varlamov, who'd played 58-plus minutes on Friday in Denver.
Colorado tied it at 1-1 at 5:51 of the second period. Mikhail Grigorenko flipped a pass from behind the net to Duchene in front. Duchene, with Coyotes defenseman Alex Goliogski all over him, turned with the puck and fired past Domingue.
The Avalanche had more scoring opportunities and put pressure on Domingue in the second period. But the 24-year-old goalie made a number of athletic and fast-reflex saves, finishing his night with 31 saves but losing for the for fifth time in six games.
Colorado outshot Arizona 34-25, but the Coyotes missed some close ones. Hanzal had a shot hit the crossbar midway through the third period.
NOTES: Arizona RW Tobias Rieder appeared in his 162nd consecutive game. He hasn't missed a game since making his NHL debut on almost two years ago, Nov. 2, 2014. ... D Michael Stone (upper-body injury) left the team's pregame skate Saturday morning after starting it on the ice. He was hurt in Thursday's game at Philadelphia and was one of three scratches for the Coyotes on Saturday. ... Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said G Mike Smith is more week-to-week than day-to-day. Smith is on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, and it could be some time before he takes the ice again. Smith has been out since late in the second game of the season. ... Colorado D Fedor Tyutin was scratched due to a groin injury while F Cody McLeod and F Gabriel Bourque were healthy scratches for Colorado. ... Stone, C Dylan Strome and F Lawson Crouse were scratched for Arizona.