MacKinnon scores in OT as Avalanche rally to beat Islanders 5-4
DENVER (AP) — Nathan MacKinnon scored a power-play goal 32 seconds into overtime, and the Colorado Avalanche rallied to beat the New York Islanders 5-4 on Tuesday night.
MacKinnon got the winner with a slapshot on a pass from Cale Makar, his 20th goal of the season. MacKinnon also had two assists and extended his home point streak to 20 games to begin the season, a franchise record.
Valeri Nichushkin had two goals, Jonathan Drouin had a goal and an assist, and Devon Toews had a goal against his former team. Makar had three assists and Alexandar Georgiev had 18 saves for Colorado.
Brock Nelson had a goal and an assist and Ilya Sorokin had 23 saves in relief of Semyon Varlamov for the shorthanded Islanders. Pierre Engvall, Alexander Romanov and Simon Holmstrom also scored for the Islanders.
Varlamov was one of two players New York lost during the game. He left at 14:52 after making a save, his 11th of the night, and was replaced by Sorokin.
Varlamov was making his first start in a week and served as Sorokin’s backup in a 3-1 loss at Pittsburgh on Sunday night.
Defenseman Robert Bortuzzo went off after getting checked into the boards by Samuel Girard late in the second period. Bortuzzo got up but could not put weight on his right leg and was helped off the ice and into the locker room.
Engvall and Nelson scored in the first period to give New York a 2-1 lead and went ahead by two goals on Holmstrom’s goal just 1:09 into the second.
Nichushkin’s first of the night and Drouin’s goal 4:10 apart tied early in the second but Romanov put the Islanders ahead 4-3 when his shot from the point went off the skate of Avalanche defenseman Jack Johnson and through Georgiev’s pads at 10:18 of the second.
Nichushkin tied it with his 19th goal of the season at 12:21 of the third period.
UP NEXT
Islanders: At Arizona on Thursday night.
Avalanche: At Dallas on Thursday night.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL