NHL: St. Louis Blues at Colorado Avalanche - Source: Imagn

First-period onslaught, perfection from MacKenzie Blackwood, and more: 3 reasons why the Colorado Avalanche defeated the St. Louis Blues 5-0

Modified Feb 01, 2025 05:34 GMT

The Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues 5-0 on Friday at Ball Arena in downtown Denver.

Thanks to a first-period barrage of offense from the Avalanche, the game proved to be a no-contest. The Avalanche improved to 30-21-2 on the season while the Blues fell to 23-25-2.

The first-period onslaught was started by Colorado's Jonathan Drouin, who scored his fifth goal of the season and the first of what would be two goals in the opening frame. That was followed by goals from Martin Necas and Cale Makar as well as Drouin's second of the night.

Joel Kiviranta tallied in the third period for the Avalanche, increasing the lead to 5-0. Blues goaltender Joel Hofer did all that he could, making 31 saves on 36 shots that he faced.

Meanwhile, the Avalanche got a perfect outing from MacKenzie Blackwood, who stopped all 19 shots he faced for his second shutout of the season.

Three reasons why the Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues

#1 First period onslaught

The Avalanche raced out to a 4-0 lead in the opening 20 minutes, overwhelming the Blues with their potent offensive attack.

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The Avalanche might not have Mikko Rantanen any longer, but they still have plenty of high-level players at their disposal - including Martin Necas, who also scored.

Simply put, the Avalanche punched the Blues in the mouth right from the get go, and they had no response.

#2 Colorado's special teams did their job

The Colorado Avalanche twice scored on the power-play, thanks to careless penalties taken by the Blues, finishing with a 50 percent efficiency on the night.

Drouin's second goal of the period and Makar's tally were both with a Blues player in the penalty box.

#3 MacKenzie Blackwood was there when he needed to be

While it wasn't an overly busy night for Blackwood, he stopped every puck the Blues fired his way for his second shutout of the season.

The Colorado Avalanche believed that Blackwood was the perfect fit for them long term and signed him to a five-year contract last month that will keep him at the club though 2030.

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