Avalanche clinch Western Conference Final berth after series win over Minnesota

The Colorado Avalanche are through to the Western Conference Final after a 4-3 overtime win over the Minnesota Wild in Game 5 on Wednesday at Ball Arena in Denver, according to NHL.com. Brett Kulak scored at 3:52 of overtime to finish a three-goal comeback and send Colorado into the third round for the first time since 2022. The result ended the second-round series in five games after Colorado took a 3-1 lead with a 5-2 win in Minnesota on Monday. Vegas joined Colorado in the conference final on Thursday night with a 5-1 win over Anaheim in Game 6, setting the matchup and the schedule for the next round. ### How did Colorado close out Minnesota? Brett Kulak scored the winner 3:52 into overtime after Martin Necas found him with a crossing pass, NHL.com reported. Colorado erased a 3-0 first-period deficit to finish the rally in front of its home crowd. Nathan MacKinnon tied the game 3-3 at 18:37 of the third period with goaltender Scott Wedgewood pulled for an extra attacker. (nhl.com) Parker Kelly had a goal and an assist, while Necas and Brent Burns each had two assists for Colorado. Nick Foligno scored twice for Minnesota, and Jesper Wallstedt was beaten on MacKinnon’s late tying shot after the Wild had controlled the first period. (nhl.com) Wild coach John Hynes called it “a heck of a shot by an unbelievable player,” according to NHL.com. ### What did Colorado players say after the clincher? (nhl.com) Kulak said the goal was “a special goal in my career,” after scoring the series winner in overtime. He also said Colorado had kept its focus on Minnesota and expected to turn its attention to the remaining second-round series only after advancing. (nhl.com) Gabriel Landeskog praised Kulak’s work away from the scoresheet as well as the goal itself. “He defends hard, and tonight he was in the right spot at the right time,” the Avalanche captain said, according to NHL.com. Scott Wedgewood said before Vegas clinched that he had been watching highlights from the Golden Knights-Ducks series and expected “a battle” regardless of the opponent. (nhl.com) After Thursday’s result, that opponent became Vegas. ### Who is waiting in the conference final? The Vegas Golden Knights advanced on Thursday with a 5-1 road win over the Anaheim Ducks in Game 6 at Honda Center. (nhl.com) Pavel Dorofeyev scored twice in the third period, and Mitch Marner and Shea Theodore each had a goal and an assist as Vegas finished off the second-round series in six games. (nhl.com) Mitch Marner leads the Stanley Cup playoffs with 18 points, while Jack Eichel has 15 and Dorofeyev has an NHL-leading nine goals, NHL.com said. Colorado’s leading scorers entering the round are MacKinnon with 13 points and Necas with 11. The Avalanche had home-ice advantage because they were the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, while Vegas entered as the Pacific Division’s top seed. (nhl.com) NHL.com said Colorado went 2-0-1 against Vegas in the regular season. ### When does the next series start? The NHL-announced schedule lists Game 1 for Wednesday, May 20, at Ball Arena in Denver at 8 p.m. (nhl.com) ET. Game 2 is set for Friday, May 22, in Denver, before the series shifts to Vegas for Games 3 and 4 on May 24 and May 26. The Colorado Avalanche website lists Game 5, if necessary, for May 28 in Denver, Game 6 for May 30 in Vegas and Game 7 for June 1 in Denver. (nhl.com) ESPN and ABC are among the listed U.S. broadcasters for the series. May 20 is the next date on the schedule for Colorado, and Ball Arena is the site of the opener against the Golden Knights. (nhl.com)