Colorado goes to shootout to beat Flames 3-2

For the second consecutive game the Colorado Avalanche went to a shoot out. And for the second consecutive game the Avs won, beating the Flames in Calgary 3-2 Monday night. Colorado has now won all four games between these teams this season, all by scores of 3-2.
The Avalanche gained two points for the win and Calgary one point for the shootout loss. As a result of Vancouver’s loss to Nashville, the Avs and Flames are tied at the top of the Northwest Division standings with 58 points. Vancouver is in third place with 56 points.
Craig Anderson was outstanding in goal for the Avalanche. He made 44 saves, several of the spectacular variety. 5 of those saves came in the overtime period when the Avs were short handed for 2:43, including 18 seconds of a 5-on-3 advantage.
There were three fights in the first four minutes of the opening period of Monday’s game, the first between the Flames Robyn Regehr and the Avs Chris Stewart just 20 seconds in. The teams’ enforcers, David Koci for Colorado and Calgary’s Brian McGrattan threw down at 3:42 and five seconds later the Avs Cody McLeod and the Flames Brandon Prust finished the fisticuffs.
Offensively, the first period was quiet, each team taking just 6 shots. The only score of the period came at 15:24 when Rene Bourque took advantage of an Avalanche defensive lapse and beat Anderson with a wrist shot.

Dustin Boyd gave Calgary a 2-0 lead at 3:59 of the second period when he knocked a loose puck past Anderson.
Colorado got on the board with a power play goal at 13:16 when Paul Stastny tipped a John-Michael Liles shot past a screened Mikka Kiprusoff in the Calgary net. Three minutes later Chris Stewart tied the game for the Avs when his long turnaround wrist shot eluded Kiprusoff, who again was screened. The period ended 2-2.

The scoreless third period saw Anderson make 17 saves for the Avs, who only managed to take 4 shots.
Overtime was also scoreless, with the Flames taking 5 shots to the Avs 1.

In the shootout Milan Hedjuk and Stewart scored for the Avs, while Olli Jokinen got the only goal for Calgary.

NOTES
-Colorado ended the 3 game road trip with a 2-1 record.
-Avalanche rookie Brandon Yip’s scoring streak ended at 3 games.
-Calgary’s Jarome Iginla went scoreless for the fourth straight game.
-The Flames Rene Bourque extended his goal scoring streak to 3 games.

NEXT
The Avalanche returns home and has 4 days off before its next game, Saturday afternoon against the Eastern Conference-leading New Jersey Devils.