Colorado close to a Grand Final victory

(Edmonton) Fresh out of jail, JT Compher broke the deadlock midway through the third period, and the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 on Saturday to take a 3-0 lead in the West final.

Posted yesterday at 11:26 p.m.

Guilty of tripping Leon Draisaitl, Compher served the penalty and, 10 seconds later, his shot slipped through Mike Smith’s pads.

Compher was able to release by winning a brief battle near the boards against Evan Bouchard, who had just touched the post.

Valeri Nichushkin beat Smith twice, while Mikko Rantanen completed in an empty net. Devon Toews had two assists. But the win didn’t come without consequences for the Avalanche. Forward Nazem Kadri will miss the end of this series, injured after falling heavily against the boards after a dangerous check from Evander Kane.

Connor McDavid and Ryan McLeod scored for the Oilers.

Smith made 39 saves, 12 more than Pavel Francouz.

The Oilers will face a sweep Monday, in front of their fans.

The Avalanche won their second Stanley Cup in 2001, but haven’t reached the Finals since.

McDavid scored in the first minute of the game. Seizing a short pass from Zach Hyman, he raced into the danger zone and hit the target with a low shot. McDavid leads with 30 playoff points in 15 games.

Nichushkin leveled before the first intermission when his shot deflected off Oilers Darnell Nurse’s stick.

The 27-year-old Russian scored a brace early in the second period, thanks to a shot from the far side (and between Bouchard’s legs). The puck deflected towards him after a point shot hit a McDavid skate.

McLeod tied the score 2-2 at 7:34 in the third period, using a wrist shot.

Derek Ryan had done well by stretching his left leg to avoid an offside when McLeod entered the zone.

Only four times have we seen an NHL club recover from a 3-0 deficit and advance to the playoffs. It most recently happened in 2014 when the Kings pulled it off at the expense of the Sharks in the first round.


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