Colorado Avalanche to face Golden Knights

The Colorado Avalanche are through to the Western Conference Final after finishing off the Minnesota Wild with a 4-3 overtime win in Game 5 on Wednesday at Ball Arena in Denver. Brett Kulak scored the winner, and Colorado erased a 3-0 first-period deficit to close the second-round series in five games. The Vegas Golden Knights became the Avalanche’s next opponent after beating the Anaheim Ducks 5-1 in Game 6 on Thursday in Anaheim. The NHL said Colorado will have home-ice advantage in the best-of-seven series because the Avalanche were the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. ### How did Colorado actually clinch the series? Wednesday’s clincher turned on Colorado’s comeback from three goals down. NHL.com said the Avalanche trailed 3-0 in the first period before rallying for the 4-3 overtime victory that sent them to the conference final for the first time since 2022. Brett Kulak delivered the decisive goal in overtime, and Colorado’s own game recap called it the finish to a three-goal comeback. (nhl.com) Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas were among the team’s top postseason contributors entering the next round, according to NHL.com’s series lookahead. ### Why is Vegas the opponent instead of Anaheim? Vegas secured the matchup one day later. (nhl.com) NHL.com said the Golden Knights advanced by beating the Ducks 5-1 in Game 6 at Honda Center on Thursday, ending that second-round series in six games. The bracket now leaves Colorado and Vegas as the last two teams in the West. (nhl.com) ESPN’s playoff bracket showed Colorado had eliminated Minnesota and Vegas had eliminated Anaheim, setting the conference final pairing. ### What does the schedule look like? May 20 is the listed date for Game 1. The Avalanche’s official schedule page shows Game 1 in Denver at 6 p.m. (nhl.com) MDT on ESPN, followed by Game 2 on May 22, before the series shifts to Las Vegas for Game 3 on May 24. The same page lists Game 4 for May 26, with Games 5 through 7, if necessary, on May 28, May 30 and June 1. The NHL’s playoff lookahead also said Game 1 would be played Wednesday at 8 p.m. (espn.com) ET, matching the May 20 opener on Colorado’s schedule page. ### Which players define this matchup right now? Nathan MacKinnon entered the Western final leading Colorado with 13 playoff points, including seven goals, while Martin Necas had 11 points and Gabriel Landeskog and Devon Toews had eight each, NHL.com said. (nhl.com) Goaltender Scott Wedgewood was 7-1 with a 2.21 goals-against average and a.914 save percentage through eight games. (nhl.com) Mitch Marner arrived as Vegas’ leading scorer and the NHL’s top point producer this postseason with 18 points in 12 games, according to NHL.com. Jack Eichel had 15 points, Pavel Dorofeyev led the league with nine playoff goals, and Carter Hart carried an 8-4 record with a.917 save percentage. ### How did the teams fare against each other before this series? (nhl.com) Colorado went 2-0-1 against Vegas in the regular season, NHL.com said. Necas recorded six points in those three games, while MacKinnon had four. Vegas also got production in those meetings. NHL.com said Marner and Tomas Hertl each posted four points against Colorado during the regular season series. (nhl.com) ### Were they already viewed as Cup contenders? ESPN’s betting analysis published on May 9 listed Colorado at +160 to win the Stanley Cup and Vegas at +550, putting both clubs near the top of the board before the conference final matchup was set. (nhl.com) The same ESPN piece listed Nathan MacKinnon among the Conn Smythe favorites and included Marner, Eichel and Mark Stone among Vegas players on the board. May 20 is the next fixed date in the series. The Avalanche schedule lists the opener in Denver, with Game 2 on May 22 and the first game in Las Vegas on May 24. (nhl.com) (espn.com)