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Tag: MacKenzie Blackwood

  • Avalanche goalie Trent Miner’s patience, hard work pay off: ‘He is a battler’

    When Trent Miner sat at his locker room stall after the best afternoon of his professional life, he really tried to keep his emotions in check.

    He answered a bunch of questions from a horde of media members on Saturday afternoon, several more than once. He was polite and concise.

    When he left Ball Arena after collecting the first NHL win and shutout in a 4-0 win for the Colorado Avalanche, he definitely had a chance to savor the moment.

    “It was exciting,” Miner said. “Talking with my family and my friends and everyone reaching out. It was pretty special to hear from everyone. I’ve been here for quite a while, so to get to do this with this group … I was very fortunate to be a part of winning that game.”

    It might finally be Avs’ Jared Bednar’s time to win the Jack Adams Award

    Miner’s first NHL win, a 29-save shutout against the Columbus Blue Jackets came 26 days before his 25th birthday. It was also 2,395 days after the Avalanche selected him with the 202nd pick in the 2019 NHL draft.

    Players who go 100 picks earlier than that in NHL drafts are more likely to never play in the NHL than to have their dream come true. The 202nd guy in any draft class is a significant long shot.

    Scott Wedgewood went 84th in his draft, and it took him until his sixth post-draft season to reach the big leagues. Miner made it last year, but it took almost 14 months from his NHL debut before he got to celebrate backstopping his club to a win.

    “It was unbelievable,” Wedgewood said. “Super happy for him and everything that comes with it. When you’re a kid, you’re hoping for just one game in the NHL. You want to say I played one game. I made it. When you get the opportunity to play a couple and you don’t win, it can hurt you mentally.

    “He’s had to come in in relief. He’s played a couple back-to-backs. You start behind the eight ball with those opportunities. To see him get a clean start against a good team and he goes out there and wins us a hockey game does it in that fashion, it’s super cool. You just couldn’t be happier for him.”

    Wedgewood spent a large chunk of one season in the ECHL, but Miner has spent parts of three years in the league two rungs below the mountaintop. In his first three full seasons a pro, Miner played five, one and 18 games for the Colorado Eagles in the AHL.

    Keeler: Avalanche’s Brent Burns has become missing piece to Colorado’s Stanley Cup puzzle

    He wasn’t waiting his turn in Loveland. He was desperate to prove he could play there, let alone 50 miles south in Denver.

    That happened last year. Miner became the undisputed No. 1 goalie for the Eagles, leading them into the Calder Cup Playoffs. He made his NHL debut in relief and got his first NHL start, but the Avs lost 3-1 in Chicago.

    Earlier this year, Miner was great in relief and helped Colorado rally from a 4-1 deficit to get a point, but lost in a shootout. His first start was solid, but not what he wanted.

    Even this time up with the club, he’s had to wait. Wedgewood played four straight games, including three in four nights, after Mackenzie Blackwood was injured.

    “He’s a relentless worker and he is a battler,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “Goalies may be a little different, but there’s a handful of players that come out of the ECHL and it takes them a while but then they’re grinding in the American League. When they make their to the NHL, you can pretty much guarantee the guys that do that, they’re battlers and they’re going to give it everything they’ve got.

    “He’s tried to make the most of his opportunities. When you see a player develop and you know he’s putting in all that work, it’s a great feeling as an organization. We are certainly really happy for his development and what he was able to accomplish (Saturday).”

    Corey Masisak

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  • Avalanche earn depth-charged 4-0 victory against Columbus, led by Trent Miner, Brent Burns

    It was Next Generation day at Ball Arena, which involves kids taking over key roles during the in-game fan experience.

    It turned into a day where the Colorado Avalanche stars took a back seat to some of the “other guys” as well.

    Brent Burns scored twice, Trent Miner collected his first NHL victory and shutout with 29 saves and the bottom-six forwards were all over the scoresheet in a 4-0 win Saturday afternoon against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

    “We got contributions from a bunch of different guys tonight,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “It’s how you win. If you want to win a lot, you’re going to win in different ways and different guys are going to be chipping in. That’s what our team has been doing a lot this year.”

    The Avs have now won the first two contests of this season-long seven-game homestand. Colorado is halfway through its home slate this season, and is 19-0-2 at Ball Arena. The Avs have also won 17 straight here, which is one one shy of the franchise record set during the 2021-22 campaign.

    Burns gave Colorado the lead at 13:58 of the opening period. Gavin Brindley took the puck off the wall after a nice pass from Valeri Nichushkin and to the net on a rush. During the ensuing scramble, the rebound of a sharp-angle Ross Colton shot kicked out to the inside edge of the right circle and Burns snapped one through all the traffic in front for his seventh goal of the season.

    His second goal of the game and eighth of the year came with Colorado’s fourth line on the ice. Brindley and Zakhar Bardakov collected assists as Burns’ perimeter shot went off the goaltender, off a Blue Jackets’ defenseman and trickled across the goal line.

    Burns is one of the great offensive defensemen on the 21st century, but his eight goals this year are already two more than his last season with the Carolina Hurricanes. He’s well-positioned to hit double digits for the 14th time in his career, and 15 for the ninth time isn’t out of the question.

    His two-goal game came two days after his defense partner, Josh Manson, scored twice.

    “I don’t think either shot was going at the net,” Burns said. “I wasn’t thinking about it. (Manson) even talked about it today, about how this game has a funny way of humbling you … we just talked about having a good game. It was lucky bounces, but it’s (also) forwards being in good spots.”

    Colorado’s recently formed third line produced the next two goals after Burns’ opener. Parker Kelly, up from the fourth line because of an injury to captain Gabe Landeskog, won a battle along the boards to the right of Columbus goalie Elvis Merzlikins. He got the puck to Jack Drury, who made a crafty little pass to Victor Olofsson for a backhanded shot and his eight goal of the season at 17:28 of the opening period.

    Olofsson, a shoot-first offensive player in his career, had gone 11 games without a goal, though Avs coach Jared Bednar has repeatedly praised his defense and all-around play in his first season with the club.

    Ilya Solovyov scored his first career NHL goal to give Colorado a 3-0 advantage midway through the second period. Olofsson led the offensive rush out of his own end, before leaving the puck for Kelly. His cross-ice pass found Solovyov, the trailing defenseman, and he buried a wrist shot from the left circle at 10:30 of the middle frame.

    It was the third straight game with a point for Solovyov. He had no goals and four assists in his first 25 career NHL games, but has a goal and two assists in his past three.

    Corey Masisak

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  • Avalanche power play springs to life, leads to 5-3 comeback win against Carolina

    RALEIGH, N.C. — If the Colorado Avalanche power play starts to get rolling, look out.

    Already the NHL’s dominant team at even strength and the No. 1-ranked penalty kill entering the day, Colorado’s power play led a dramatic third-period comeback Saturday night. The Avs scored twice in the final period with the man advantage, with a goal from ex-Carolina forward Jack Drury in between, leading to a 5-3 victory over the Hurricanes at Lenovo Center.

    It was the 10th straight win for the Avs, who are now 31-2-7 after 40 games. The Avs now have two separate 10-game winning streaks this season.

    “It was a great effort,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “It would have been easy to pack it in, but I thought our guys, as soon as the puck hit the ice in the third, they were determined.

    “It was great to see our power play capitalize. There was a little frustration early on because of the pressure they put on you. They found a way to stick with it and get better on that unit.”

    RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA – JANUARY 03: Brock Nelson #11 of the Colorado Avalanche chases a puck during the third period of a hockey match against the Carolina Hurricanes at Lenovo Center on January 03, 2026 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images)

    Newly-minted Olympian Brock Nelson scored twice. Nathan MacKinnon had an empty-net goal and four points, retaking the league lead from Connor McDavid with 74. Scott Wedgewood made 25 saves in his first start since Mackenzie Blackwood was put on injured reserve Friday.

    Carolina led 3-1 heading into the third period. That lead did not last long.

    Andrei Svechnikov took a tripping penalty 11 seconds into the third period, and the Avalanche power play started the comeback. Nelson tipped a wrist shot from MacKinnon past Carolina goalie Frederik Andersen at 1:09 of the third. It was Nelson’s 17th goal of the season.

    Drury then tied this contest at 3-3 just 33 seconds later. Ross Colton set him up for a shot from the left circle and his seventh goal of the year.

    “Huge goal,” Brent Burns, another former Carolina player returning for the first time since leaving, said. “He just does so many things right, so many hard things right. He’s such a great player, smart player. I try to sit next to him just to get some IQ into my head.”

    Nelson’s 18th of the season and second of the night with the man advantage put Colorado in front at 7:30. It was one of the prettiest goals of the Avs season. It was a tic-tac-toe passing play, with Cale Makar sending the puck to MacKinnon, whose cross-ice slap-pass set up Nelson for an easy one from the right circle.

    This is only the fourth time all season the Avs have scored multiple power-play goals in a game.

    “It’s nice,” Nelson said. “Another different way to win a game for us. It was nice to get a couple and be a big difference maker in a big comeback win on the road against a good team.”

    The power play that led to Nelson’s goal did not come without a cost. Devon Toews crashed into the end boards skates first and left the game. Nikolaj Ehlers was called for tripping on the play.

    Toews was down for an extended period, but did return to the game late in the period. After the game, Bednar said he believes Toews is OK.

    Carolina has been one of the most dangerous offensive teams while killing penalties for years, and the Hurricanes grabbed the lone goal of the first period while shorthanded. Sebastian Aho deflected a MacKinnon pass to Makar, and then got a piece of Makar as he tried to move the puck to Martin Necas.

    Eric Robinson intercepted that pass and sent it to Aho, who had already taken off behind Makar and went in alone for a breakaway goal at 18:09 of the first. That was Aho’s first shorthanded goal of the season, but it was the 37th shot attempt for Carolina with him on the ice on the PK, which is tops among all forwards in the NHL.

    It was also Aho’s 300th career goal. That’s also three shorthanded goals against in seven games.

    Corey Masisak

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  • Avalanche places goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood on injured reserve

    The Colorado Avalanche has been one of the healthiest NHL teams this season, but it’s run into a mini-injury crisis.

    Mackenzie Blackwood was placed on injured reserve Friday with a lower-body injury, just the Avs are about to play three of the best teams in the Eastern Conference all away from Ball Arena. A team spokesman said Blackwood will be re-evaluated after this three-game road trip, which begins Saturday against Carolina and finishes Sunday at Florida and Tuesday against Tampa Bay.

    Blackwood, who is 13-1-1 with a league-leading 2.07 goals against average and second-best .924 save percentage, played Wednesday night against St. Louis. He made 12 saves in a 6-1 victory and spoke to the media afterwards.

    Corey Masisak

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  • Avalanche sign goaltender Scott Wedgewood to one-year contract extension

    Scott Wedgewood didn’t need a full calendar year to show the Colorado Avalanche why the club should want to keep him around.

    Wedgewood signed a one-year contract extension Thursday morning worth $2.5 million, a source confirmed to the Denver Post. The 33-year-old goaltender is in the final season of a two-year deal he had originally signed with the Nashville Predators, and he would have been an unrestricted free agent this summer.

    Instead, the Avs now have the “Lumber Yard” tandem of Mackenzie Blackwood and Wedgewood in place through the 2026-27 season.

    “It’s just a place that my wife and I have felt at home with,” Wedgewood said. “A great hockey team. All those guys in the room, I owe them a lot of beers for putting me in this situation. It’s just been a good fit since I got here.”

    The Avs traded goalie Justus Annunen and a sixth-round draft pick to the Predators on Dec. 1, 2024, for Wedgewood. It was the first of many roster-overhauling deals that general manager Chris MacFarland made last season.

    Wedgewood’s arrival helped stabilize the goaltending position. The Avs were last in the NHL in save percentage before Dec. 1. They added Blackwood 10 days later and had the sixth-best save percentage through the remainder of the 2024-25 season.

    Blackwood missed the first 12 games of this season, rehabbing from an offseason procedure. Wedgewood has filled in as the starter and leads the NHL with 10 wins (10-1-2). His .913 save percentage is fifth among goalies with at least 10 games played, and his 2.26 goals against average is third.

    Wedgewood said the deal was almost completed Wednesday night, but his wife likely found out on social media when it was officially done Thursday morning because it was just before the morning skate at Ball Arena. His parents are also in town to help celebrate.

    “It’s a chance to play 30-plus games, a chance to be on a really good team, a chance of winning (the Stanley Cup),” Wedgewood said. “When you put it in that perspective, it’s probably the best spot in the league to be a 1A and 1B with (Blackwood).”

    The Avs also have Ilya Nabokov, a second-round pick in the 2024 NHL draft, under contract for next season. Nabokov, 22, was the KHL playoff MVP in 2024 and is expected to join the Avs in the spring after his season with Magnitogorsk ends.

    After back-to-back strong seasons as Magnitogorsk’s starter, Nabokov has struggled at times this year.

    “We’ve got Nabokov coming, we’ve got Blackwood locked in (through 2030), but Nabokov’s never played in North America or the NHL,” Bednar said. “(A) good prospect and has some growth that he still needs in his game.

    “When you get a guy (like Wedgewood) who wants to be here and fits in your culture and then performs like this on the ice, I think the natural progression is trying to get him locked up.”

    Nichushkin week-to-week

    When Gavin Brindley signed a contract extension Tuesday, his coach said he believes the 21-year-old can be a top-six forward in this league. Two days later, he is one.

    Valeri Nichushkin will miss at least a handful of games and is week-to-week, Bednar said Thursday morning. The club expects to have a better handle on his timeline early next week.

    “Nothing too serious, which is good, but serious enough that he’s going to miss a handful of games at least,” Bednar said.

    The Avs have had players missing with injuries this season, but the top-nine forwards all played each of the first 17 games.

    In the meantime, Brindley will move up to the second line Thursday night against the Buffalo Sabres and play next to Brock Nelson and Ross Colton. Brindley has been an early-season surprise for the Avs, earning more trust from the coaching staff while playing primarily on the fourth line.

    “Gavin Brindley — that’s how we (replace him),” Bednar said. “With Val, it’s power play, it’s penalty kill, it’s top-six minutes, it’s empty net when you need one and empty net when you need to keep the other team off the board. It’s a lot of different duties that we will split up.

    Corey Masisak

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  • Avalanche Journal: Five thoughts on Colorado’s fast, drama-free start

    Jared Bednar, an avid angler, likes to compare his hockey team over a long season to a boat.

    He sees it like this: The team builds its identity and what it wants to be over the first part of the season, and then there are aspects that just break during the grind of 82 games — kind of like a well-used fishing vessel. How quickly the club fixes the issues and regains its optimal performance is a big part of a successful campaign.

    The Colorado Avalanche left the dock with a major leak last season. Fixing the boat on the fly was an all-hands-on-deck situation, from the coaching staff to the front office.

    The start of the 2025-26 season has been a complete 180. The Avs were 4-0-1 heading into a Saturday night contest at Ball Arena with the Boston Bruins, and the one blemish might have been the best overall performance considering the foe.

    Colorado’s NHL team is relatively healthy, stable and off to a strong start. The Avs allowed eight goals in the season opener last year. They’ve allowed eight total in the first five contests.

    “Overall, a pretty good start, being able to win hockey games without really having played our best as a team,” Avs captain Gabe Landeskog said. “If you can figure out your game as a team while winning, and kind of go through some of those growing pains at the start of the season while racking up some points, I think that’s a positive thing.

    “And I think we are only scratching the surface.”

    Here are some observations from the first five-game segment of this Stanley Cup-or-bust season in Denver.

    1. Nathan MacKinnon is already in Hart Trophy finalist form

    Natural Stat Trick had MacKinnon on the ice for 17 scoring chances in Buffalo. He took 17 shifts in the game. The 2024 league MVP has been on the ice for 49 scoring chances at 5-on-5, which is tied for third among forwards. The two players ahead of him and the one who is even are all on the two-time defending champs, the Florida Panthers, who have also played an extra game.

    The Avs have outscored the opposition 7-0 at even strength with MacKinnon on the ice, 10-0 overall. Those are just some numbers in a small sample size.

    Corey Masisak

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  • Hughes and Sharangovich help Devils beat Canucks 5-2

    Hughes and Sharangovich help Devils beat Canucks 5-2

    VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Yegor Sharangovich and Jack Hughes each scored and had an assist to help the New Jersey Devils beat the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 on Tuesday night.

    Nico Hischier, Michael McLeod and Dawson Mercer also had goals for the Devils (7-3-0), who won their fourth game in a row for the first time since October 2018.

    Bo Horvat replied for the Canucks (2-6-2) with a pair of power-play goals. J.T. Miller assisted on both.

    New Jersey netminder Mackenzie Blackwood made 21 saves and improved his career record against Vancouver to 5-0-0.

    “I think we’ve been doing a good job of capitalizing on our chances as of late and really limiting stuff that the other team was getting in our end,” Blackwood said. “Tonight we did a good job of burying chances.”

    Jesper Bratt had an assist on Hischier’s fifth goal, extending his season-opening point streak to 10 games (four goals, 12 assists), which equaled a franchise record.

    “I think (Bratt’s) playing a team game and he’s getting rewarded,” Devils coach Lindy Ruff said.

    “He’s taking advantage of the opportunities and he’s finding a way every night to get on the board.”

    Thatcher Demko stopped 32 of 36 shots for Vancouver.

    The defeat snapped a two-game win streak for the Canucks, who lost seven in a row to start the season.

    “We need our veteran guys and our better players to be better players consistently, every day, not just one good game here and one good game there,” Vancouver coach Bruce Boudreau said. “And that goes not only for (defensemen) but it goes for the forwards as well and the goaltending as well.”

    Boudreau pulled his goalie with less than two minutes left and Hughes scored into the empty net.

    Vancouver made a late push, pulling Demko in favor of an extra attacker after New Jersey’s Ryan Graves was called for holding with 3:34 left on the clock.

    The move paid off when Horvat buried his second of the night with a one-timer from the high hash marks at the 17:12 mark, cutting the deficit to 4-2.

    “Obviously, the puck’s going in right now. But I’d rather be getting wins than scoring goals right now. I’d rather have none and be 9-0-0,” Horvat said. “But it’s not the way it’s going right now. And we’ve got to put this one in the past and keep plugging away here.”

    NEW FACES

    Canucks defenseman Ethan Bear and center Jack Studnicka made their debuts for Vancouver after being acquired in separate trades last week. Star blueliner Quinn Hughes returned to the lineup after missing four games with a lower-body injury.

    NEW THREADS

    The Canucks wore their new navy blue “Johnny Canuck” reverse retro jerseys. The sweaters pay homage to the team’s namesake, a lumberjack-looking character called Johnny Canuck, which served as the team’s logo when it entered the Western Hockey League in 1945.

    UP NEXT

    New Jersey: At the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday.

    Vancouver: Hosts the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday.

    ———

    AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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