NHL

Colorado Avalanche at San Jose Sharks

· National Hockey League
Final
4 - 2

Kiviranta scores twice in 3rd, Blackwood gets win over former team as Avalanche beat Sharks 4-2

Colorado Avalanche vs. San Jose Sharks: Game Highlights

The Avalanche have won five of seven, while the Sharks have dropped six of seven.

After the Avalanche killed a penalty, Kiviranta scored off the counterattack at 13:06 of the third to give Colorado a 3-2 lead. He scored again just under three minutes later for an insurance goal.

The game featured goaltenders who were traded for each other last week. Alexandar Georgiev stopped 27 shots for the Sharks.

Valeri Nichushkin opened the scoring for Colorado in the first period. In the second, Carl Grundstrom scored his first goal with San Jose, and William Eklund gave the Sharks the lead.

Luke Kunin assisted on both Sharks goals. Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar each had two assists for the Avalanche.

Trailing 2-1 entering the third, Colorado tied the game on a power-play goal by Mikko Rantanen midway through the period.

Takeaways Avalanche: Blackwood looked sharp against his former club, and the Avalanche picked up their new No. 1 goaltender with a third-period comeback.

Sharks: San Jose has given up multiple third-period goals in each of its last five games. Head coach Ryan Warsofsky said before the game his team had felt frustrated at not being able to close out opponents.

Key moment Colorado fended off consecutive San Jose power plays midway through the third, and then capitalized on a turnover by the Sharks in the offensive zone. Logan O’Connor found a streaking Kiviranta on the left wing, and he beat Georgiev glove side for the go-ahead goal.

Key stat The Avalanche have won 11 straight games against the Sharks, their longest win streak against one opponent.

Up next The Avalanche play at Anaheim on Friday, while the Sharks visit Edmonton on Saturday.

Regular Season Series

COL leads series 2-0

Scoring Summary

Goal 1st Period 3:40 Valeri Nichushkin Goal (9) Backhand, assists: Cale Makar (30), Nathan MacKinnon (38)
Goal 2nd Period 4:26 Carl Grundstrom Goal (1) Wrist Shot, assists: Jan Rutta (4), Luke Kunin (5)
Goal 2nd Period 9:29 William Eklund Goal (6) Wrist Shot, assists: Cody Ceci (8), Luke Kunin (6)
Goal 3rd Period 8:26 Mikko Rantanen Goal (19) Slap Shot, assists: Nathan MacKinnon (39), Cale Makar (31)
Goal 3rd Period 13:06 Joel Kiviranta Goal (6) Wrist Shot, assists: Logan O'Connor (4)
Goal 3rd Period 15:58 Joel Kiviranta Goal (7) Slap Shot, assists: Artturi Lehkonen (6), Casey Mittelstadt (16)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/col.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originCOL https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/sj.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originSJ
13 Blocked Shots 16
10 Hits 11
3 Takeaways 5
31 Shots 34
2 Power Play Goals 0
4 Power Play Opportunities 4
50.0 Power Play Percentage 0.0
0 Short Handed Goals 0
0 Shootout Goals 0
34 Faceoffs Won 32
51.5 Faceoff Win Percent 48.5
9 Giveaways 10
5 Total Penalties 5
10 Penalty Minutes 10
San Jose Sharks San Jose Sharks Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Shakir Mukhamadullin, D Out Apr 17
Thomas Bordeleau, C Out Apr 16
Vincent Desharnais, D Out Apr 15
Logan Couture, C Injured Reserve Apr 14
Klim Kostin, C Out Apr 13
Colorado Avalanche Colorado Avalanche Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Ross Colton, C Day-To-Day Apr 24
Sean Behrens, D Out Oct 8
Tucker Poolman, D Injured Reserve Oct 6

Game Information

SAP Center at San Jose

Location: San Jose, CA
Attendance: 12,517 | Capacity:

2024-25 Central Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Winnipeg 56 22 116 4
Dallas 50 26 106 6
Colorado 49 29 102 4
Minnesota 45 30 97 7
St. Louis 44 30 96 8
Utah 38 31 89 13
Nashville 30 44 68 8
Chicago 25 46 61 11

2024-25 Pacific Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Vegas 50 22 110 10
Los Angeles 48 25 105 9
Edmonton 48 29 101 5
Calgary 41 27 96 14
Vancouver 38 30 90 14
Anaheim 35 37 80 10
Seattle 35 41 76 6
San Jose 20 50 52 12
Full Standings