DALLAS — There’s still the heart of a Stanley Cup champion beating inside that Colorado Avalanche team.
Superstar defenseman Cale Makar scored twice, including the eventual game winner 4:28 into the third period, as the Avalanche staved off elimination with a 5-3 win over the Dallas Stars in Game 5 on Wednesday night.
The Stars lead the series 3-2, with Game 6 on Friday night in Denver.
The Avs erased 1-0 and 2-1 deficits and, amazingly, took their first in-game lead of the entire series when Casey Mittelstadt banked one in off Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger 1:28 into third period to make it 3-2. Makar then made it 4-2 less than three minutes later.
“We go down twice and just stay with it, we don’t give up on it,” coach Jared Bednar said. “That’s probably the thing I like the most. They (Avs players) took some of the stuff we showed over the last couple of days on the offensive side of it. You can see steps in the right direction. A little more confidence and not so uptight and scared to make plays as we were in the previous couple of games, trying to be perfect. We played our game, we played with skill, we played with a little pace.”
Logan Stankoven made things interesting, cutting the lead to 4-3 with a nifty re-direct, Joe Pavelski-style, to make it 4-3 at the 5:28 mark. But while the Stars pressed the rest of the period, they couldn’t find the equalizer and Nathan MacKinnon added a late goal.
“I think after getting dominated in Game 4, we needed to build our game back up and get some confidence,” MacKinnon said. “Game 1 feels like an eternity ago. It was nice to feel like we were the better team. We didn’t just win. I felt like we were the better team. Definitely happy with the effort.”
You love to 'C' it pt. six. #GoAvsGo | #ALLIN pic.twitter.com/GrL5tzMt30
— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) May 16, 2024
Heiskanen-Makar matchup doesn’t disappoint
In a series pitting two stud blueliners in Dallas’ Miro Heiskanen and Makar, selected Nos. 3 and 4 overall, respectively, in the 2017 draft, both made their mark again in Game 5. Heiskanen now has four goals and four assists in the series.
Heiskane scored again Wednesday night to give the Stars a 2-1 lead at 11:39 of the second period on a power play, as he finshed off a two-on-zero break on a nice feed from Jason Robertson.
But Makar responded before the end of the second period with his patented laser wrist shot from the point on an Avs power play to make it 2-2. Makar now has three goals and two assists in the series, putting up three points in Game 1 before going pointless in three straight.
“He was great,” MacKinnon said. “He’s been unreal. He’s won a Conn Smythe for a reason. He’s been there, done that. He’s not shaken by anything. He’s so mentally strong and we’re lucky to have him back there.”
It’s just a real treat to watch both these blue-liners in this series.
Avs’ stars, power play turn it around
Colorado tweaked its lines a bit to spread out the talent at forward, and it worked.
MacKinnon, who entered with one point and a minus-six rating in his last three games, had one goal and one assist. Mikko Rantanen, with one point and minus-five in his last three, had an assist. Then, of course, there was Makar, who played a team-high 26 minutes, 46 seconds, and was his usual strong self.
“We knew we were going to get their best game of the series and we did,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “Their big guys were all on the scoresheet tonight, which you probably anticipated would happen.”
The Avalanche also got a big boost from their power play, which scored two goals after being held scoreless in the previous three games.
“Just possession,” MacKinnon said. “We got some cleaner entries. I had to do a better job of creating cleaner entries for the boys. Had a couple good ones. Obviously we got Cale up top with some time. Great screens. That’s what makes us successful. Pretty, pretty simple hockey. (Artturi Lehkonen) found a pocket and it was a great shot.”
Makar said of the power-play improvement: “I haven’t taken a look at it, but again, moving feet and quick puck movement. I felt like once we were getting pucks, it was right on and off the stick, and trying to avoid a little bit of their pressure. So again, kind of having that different mentality, that attack mentality, and not trying to back down or trying to look for the perfect play.”
Stars get a Tanev scare
Chris Tanev isn’t 100 percent right now, that’s for sure. The Stars defenseman looked wobbly near the end of Game 4 after taking a huge hit from Ross Colton in the corner. Dallas kept Tanev off the ice Tuesday on the off day, and also Wednesday morning at the morning skate.
I chatted with Tanev on Wednesday morning and he said he was good to go. Stars teammate Ty Dellandrea was nearby and quipped nodding in Tanev’s direction: “Warrior.”
Dallas got a scare right off the hop Wednesday night, when Tanev got hit by MacKinnon on his very first shift and went down the tunnel to the Stars’ dressing room. But he came back a few shifts later.
Tanev continued to get most of the matchup against MacKinnon’s top line Wednesday night and fared well.
“It’s that time of year,” DeBoer said after the game. “He’s not the only one. There’s a lot of guys that are playing either hurt or with different things. He doesn’t have many teeth left. He didn’t have many to begin with. But from what I understood, (the tooth) got pushed in. They had to pull it in order for him to come back. He didn’t miss much, though. Didn’t miss many shifts.”
On the other side of things, Tanev took a high-sticking penalty in the second period that led to Colorado’s game-tying goal.
Hardest win evades Dallas
DeBoer reiterated a couple of days in a row how difficult it would be to close out an Avalanche team that won the Cup two years ago.
I asked DeBoer after the morning skate Wednesday, pointing to season-saving wins by the Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes this week, why it’s so difficult for teams to try and match the same emotional desperation as the team whose season can end that night.
“Yeah, it’s always the million-dollar question,” DeBoer said. “I don’t know if you can artificially manufacture the fact that you’re sitting there when the puck drops, and you’re going home in 60 minutes of the season if you lose. It’s hard to manufacture that desperation. At the same time, as a coach, you just have to impart on your group the importance of taking advantage of these opportunities.
“One, because they can disappear quickly, like you see around the league. Finishing off teams and getting rest as you move forward has shown to be critical, too, when you have that opportunity. That should be where our desperation comes from.”
The Stars had a tough, seven-game series in Round 1, so there’s no question a Game 5 win, and early advancement, would have been huge for them to get some rest.
Not to mention Roope Hintz missed Game 5 with an upper-body injury; he’s day to day. And, as mentioned above, Tanev sure can use the rest, too.
But now this is going at least six games. Not ideal for Dallas.
Toews returns in a big way
Colorado got a big boost with the return of defenseman Devon Toews, who missed Game 4 with an illness.
Toews played 24 minutes, 20 seconds, second only to Makar (and tied with MacKinnon) and recorded three shots on goal and one blocked shot.
