The Colorado Avalanche were in control of their opening round Stanley Cup Playoff series against the Dallas Stars, picking up a convincing 5-1 win in the opening game and then having a chance to win in overtime in Game 2.
Dallas forward Colin Blackwell scored the overtime winning goal in Game 2, knotting the series at 1-1 apiece; the series then shifted to Denver for Game 3, where the Avalanche welcomed back captain Gabriel Landeskog for the first time in over 1,000 days.
Despite taking a 1-0 lead in the first period and enjoying a four-minute power-play at the end of regulation in early overtime, the Avalanche couldn’t convert and were eventually beaten by a 2-1 final score; they now trail the best-of-seven series, two games to one.
Avalanche Fans Stupefied After Power Play Outage In Game 3 Loss
Avalanche fans were mortified after their team missed multiple golden opportunities to secure the victory, especially during the four-minute, double-minor that the Stars were slapped with late in regulation.
Most of the vitriol from fans was directed at their power-play failure, starting with this fan, who said, “You don’t deserve to win if you can’t convert on a 4-minute PP.”
One fan was flabbergasted at the power-play outage, exclaiming,” Embarrassing. 0/6 on PP??????”
That refrain was continued by this fan, who said, “0 for 6 on the power play is CRAZY work.”
This fan echoed that frustration, saying, “Seems like the avs don’t have what it takes anymore I just give up on watching you guys fail a 4-minute power play Dallas def got the refs paywall”
One angry Avalanche fan blasted coach Jared Bednar, saying, “Bednar needs to take some accountability on how bad the power play lines have been. Just getting out-coached rn.”
This fan kept it simple, saying, “Pathetic. You get four minutes on the power play to try to win the most important game of the season, and you mess around for three minutes.”
This fan ripped the effort by the team as a whole by saying, “Piss poor effort. Sloppy in the neutral zone all night. This team doesn’t deserve s**t.”
Finally, this fan’s complaint was an exclamation point on the Avs faithful’s anger, saying, “Considering the circumstances and the stakes, that’s one of the worst powerplays I’ve seen. Imagine if you got three full minutes of opportunities that instead of thirty seconds. It’s just not enough.”
Avalanche Captain Gabriel Landeskog Returned
One positive for the Avalanche was the return of captain Gabriel Landeskog, who hadn’t played since hoisting the Stanley Cup in June of 2022 after his club’s victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
He said that he felt physically good and, despite the disappointing loss, he’s ready for Saturday’s Game 4.
“I felt pretty good; speed-wise, legs, physically, I felt good,” Landeskog said. “It felt great in all areas tonight, in terms of just being back, and then on the ice, play-wise, there’s areas to improve. But very special night, regardless of the outcome, and looking forward to Saturday already.”
Game 4 between the Avalanche and Stars will be played on Saturday evening.