*Photo from the Colorado Springs Gazette*
Thanks to the efforts provided by the Colorado Avalanche, there is now one less undefeated team in the NHL. JT Compher scored twice, Nazem Kadri scored, and the Avalanche defeated the St.Louis Blues 4-3 on Thursday night.
The loss ends the undefeated season for the Blues, who now possess a 5-1-0 record in their first 6 games of the season, still in charge of the Central Division, 5 places ahead of the Avalanche. However, this game was all Colorado, as they outshot the Blues by a whopping 42-18 total. Defenseman Cale Makar also recorded his 100th career point, in his 108th game.
Kadri was very pleased after the game, saying that "It's an excellent, great road game. We came out with a great start. I don't think we let off the gas throughout the whole game. They pushed back a couple of times with some timely goals, but we responded well. That's good to see from a mature group."
The Blues struck first to start the game, when Colton Parayko scored his first goal of the season 9:21 into the game, making it 1-0 Blues early, on assists by Marco Scandella and Vladimir Tarasenko. With 1:48 remaining in the opening period, Compher got the Avalanche on the board, scoring his 3rd of the season to tie the game 1-1 after one period.
In the second period, while on the power play, Compher struck again, his 4th goal of the season and second of the night coming 11:33 into the period, giving the Avalanche a 2-1 lead. Then, 3:07 after Compher scored, Kadri added his second goal of the season at the 14:40 marker, increasing the Avalanche lead to 3-1 after two periods.
In the 3rd period, Brayden Schenn cut into the deficit for the Blues, with his second goal of the season coming 4:13 into the 3rd, making it a 3-2 game. Makar then scored the game winning goal for the Avalanche, making it a 4-2 game 38 seconds after Schenn scored, assisted by Nathan MacKinnon. Tarasenko scored with just under 4 minutes remaining to make it 4-3, but the Blues couldn't score after that.
Colorado head coach Jared Bednar talked about Makar's game winning goal, saying that "He's playing better. Tonight, he was on it right away. He played more physical and with more assertiveness. He was better with the puck. He ends up scoring. He keeps shooting and eventually one goes in for him. He's making better decisions tonight."
In his start, Darcy Kuemper didn't have to work very hard. Kuemper saved 15 of just 18 shots he faced from the Blues, posting a .833 save percentage. Thanks to a stingy defense in front of him, Kuemper's record improved to 3-3-0 this season.
On the Blues side, Jordan Binnington saw a lot more action in his start. Binnington saved 38 of 42 shots the Avalanche offense sent his way, even without Mikko Rantanen in the lineup. With the loss, his first of the season, Binnington's record falls to 4-1-0 this season.
Schenn talked about the loss to the Avalanche, saying that "They're a good team over there. They play fast. We knew that. I don't think we had skating legs tonight, I don't think we moved our feet enough and the result was for us to play probably way too much in our own end."
The Blues get back in action on Saturday, when they face the Chicago Blackhawks. Binnington figures to get the start. The Avalanche face the Minnesota Wild on Saturday, with Kuemper likely starting again.
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