Josh Manson scored at 8:02 of overtime and the Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues 3-2 in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series on Tuesday night in Denver.
Manson also had an assist, Valeri Nichushkin and Samuel Girard had goals, Gabriel Landeskog had two assists and Darcy Kuemper stopped 23 shots for the Avalanche, who have won their first five games of this postseason.
Jordan Kyrou and Ryan O’Reilly scored and Jordan Binnington made 51 saves for St. Louis.
Colorado outshot the Blues 13-0 in the extra period and broke through when Manson, a deadline acquisition from Anaheim, scored his first goal of the postseason.
The Avalanche had a few quality scoring chances early on but it was St. Louis that broke through in the first period. Colorado defenseman Cale Makar tried to send the puck from in front of his own net out of the zone, but it bounced off the leg of Brayden Schenn and to O’Reilly.
O’Reilly roofed a backhand over Kuemper at 6:25 for his sixth goal of the playoffs to give the Blues a 1-0 lead.
It marked just the second time the Avalanche have trailed in this postseason, but it didn’t last. Colorado outshot St. Louis 19-9 in the second period and was able to take the lead.
Nichushkin got the Avalanche even early in the middle frame. Mikko Rantanen took a sharp-angle shot from the right circle that Binnington saved, but the rebound bounced out front and Nichushkin tapped it in at 3:14. It was his third goal of the postseason.
The Avalanche took the lead midway through the second when they got control of the puck in the Blues’ zone and worked the puck around to the point. Manson passed it across to Girard, who drifted to the top of the right circle and beat Binnington with a snapshot at 11:32.
It was his first goal of the playoffs.
Kyrou then tied it with a power-play goal at 16:46 of the third, his fourth of the playoffs.
–Field Level Media
