Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon extended Colorado’s lead in its Western Conference showdown against the Oilers with two first-period goals in rapid succession.
The 2023-24 Hart Trophy Award winner gave the Avalanche a 2-0 lead 10 minutes into the game when forward Jonathan Drouin dished him the puck, and he cut toward the center of the ice and ripped a shot past Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner.
Less than two minutes later, MacKinnon was at it again when he put the puck into the net after maneuvering past Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard with 8:12 left in the first period.
The goal gave the Avalanche (27-17-1, fourth in Central) a 3-0 lead, but the Oilers (28-13-3, second in Pacific) cut into the deficit with three goals of their own to tie the battle of Western Conference contenders, 3-3, after two periods of play.
Both teams have found their footing after slow starts. Colorado has won nine of its last 12 games, while Edmonton is 18-4-1 after beginning the season 10-9-2.
Thursday marked MacKinnon’s first two-goal game since Dec. 3 — a 5-4 win over the Sabres. Per ESPN, he moved into fifth-place for most multi-goal games in Avalanche history (50).
During the first period intermission, MacKinnon spoke with ESPN’s Leah Hextall, who asked him about his improvements in recent seasons. This year, he leads the league in points (15 goals, 55 assists) after finishing with 140 points (51 goals, 89 assists) in 2023-24.
“I think I’m a better playmaker than I was two years ago,” MacKinnon said. “I think a lot of my play stems off of that.”
“Obviously, I have a couple tonight, but they haven’t been easy to get this year,” he continued. “My playmaking’s been pretty consistent overall.”
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