Flurry of trades, signings expected before NHL free agency
While Julien BriseBois knows exactly how confident he is about the possibility of re-signing playoff performer Ondrej Palat and veteran defenseman Jan Rutta, he's not saying. "Still working on that," the two-time Stanley Cup-winning general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning said. Colorado, which beat Tampa Bay in the Cup Final, is looking to sign postseason standout Valeri Nichushkin among a group of potential free agents, and others such as Calgary MVP candidate Johnny Gaudreau, Pittsburgh center Evgeni Malkin and Florida trade deadline pickup Claude Giroux could all get new deals to stay rather than hitting the open market.
news.yahoo.comFrancouz, Kadri lead Avs to 4-0 win over Oilers in Game 2
Nazem Kadri had three assists in a 2:04 span in the second period, backup Pavel Francouz stopped 24 shots for his second career playoff shutout and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-0 on Thursday night to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference finals.
Ryan Graves hopes to be shutdown defenseman for NJ Devils
New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald has been talking to Colorado counterpart Joe Sakic for almost two years about acquiring defenseman Ryan Graves. It led the two general managers to renew their discussions about the 26-year-old Graves, and they beat the deadline with a deal on Thursday night. โI slept very well,โ Fitzgerald said Friday, less than a day after he sent forward Mikhail Maltsev and a second-round pick in this year's draft to the Avalanche for the former New York Rangers draft pick.
news.yahoo.comRantanen scores OT winner, Avs up 2-0 in series vs. Knights
Mikko Rantanen scored a power-play goal 2:07 into overtime, Philipp Grubauer outdueled fellow Vezina Trophy finalist Marc-Andre Fleury and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 to take a 2-0 lead in their second-round playoff series.
Hats off: Donskoi scores 3 in 1st, Avs beat Coyotes 9-3
Colorado Avalanche right wing Joonas Donskoi reacts after scoring a goal against the Arizona Coyotes in the first period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, march 31, 2021, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)DENVER โ Joonas Donskoi scored three times during Coloradoโs five-goal first period, and the Avalanche beat the Arizona Coyotes 9-3 on Wednesday night in front of home fans for the first time this season. To celebrate Donskoiโs accomplishment, fans tossed hats onto the ice โ just like old times. Andre Burakovsky and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare also scored in a wild first period that included Arizona goals by Michael Bunting and Oliver Ekman-Larsson. AdGabriel Landeskog finished with two goals, Mikko Rantanen added another and Burakovsky scored his second with 3:11 remaining on an assist by Donskoi.
Kiviranta lifts Stars past Avs in Game 7 OT thriller
Kiviranta was playing only his third postseason game, with Andrew Cogliano unfit to play, after scoring once in 11 regular-season games. There had never been an NHL Game 7 played at a neutral site before the two games. The series was back and forth, starting from Game 1 and tonight the game itself was no different. The Stars beat the Avs in the Western Conference finals in 1999 and 2000 to make it to the Stanley Cup final. His sixth power play goal matched Joe Sakic (1996) for the second-most in an Avalanche postseason behind Michel Goulets seven in 1985.