Nathan MacKinnon's clutch effort lifts Avs past Knights in shootout

Nathan MacKinnon scored his league-leading 31st goal to go with two assists and also scored the game-winner in the fourth round of the shootout as the Colorado Avalanche edged the Vegas Golden Knights 6-5 on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

MacKinnon skated down the slot and ripped a wrist shot past the glove side of Carter Hart for the winner as the Avalanche extended their winning streak to seven games and their point streak to 10 games (9-0-1). It was Colorado's first win in five shootouts this season, and it had to twice rally from two-goal deficits in regulation to get there.

Martin Necas scored two goals, Samuel Girard had a goal and an assist, Sam Malinski had three assists and Artturi Lehkonen scored a 6-on-5 goal with 1:57 to go to force overtime for the Avalanche. Scott Wedgewood finished with 20 saves.

Alexander Holtz had a goal and an assist, Noah Hanifin had two assists and Ivan Barbashev, Ben Hutton, Brett Howden and Colton Sissons also scored for Vegas, which fell to 4-11 in games beyond regulation and 1-5 in shootouts. Hart made 33 saves.

Vegas took a 1-0 lead at the 2:43 mark of the first period when Holtz, skating down the slot, redirected Hanifin's pass inside the right post for his first goal since April 12, 2025.

Barbashev extended the lead to 2-0 at the 34-second mark of the second period when he finished an odd-man rush with Mitch Marner with a wrist shot through Wedgewood's pads.

Colorado rebounded to tie it, 2-2, later in the period with the help of a couple of friendly bounces off Vegas defensemen. Girard cut it to 2-1 when his shot into the low slot redirected off the stick of defenseman Jeremy Lauzon and over Hart's left shoulder. Necas followed with a wrist shot that caromed off the hip of defenseman Kaedan Korczak and bounced past the right skate of Hart.

But Vegas answered with two goals in a 29-second span later in the period to take a 4-2 lead. Hutton got the first with a one-timer from above the right circle over Wedgewood's glove. Howden, rushing down the slot, followed with a redirect of a Reilly Smith saucer pass past Wedgewood's blocker side.

The Avalanche rallied to tie it again, 4-4, early in the third period on goals by Necas, who whipped a wrist shot from the left circle over Hart's left shoulder, and MacKinnon, who tapped in a rebound of Malinski point shot that leaked under Hart's right arm and trickled by the goal line.

Sissons made it 5-4 for Vegas with four minutes to go when he rushed down the right wing and put in a backhand shot around Wedgewood, who was pulled for an extra attacker with 2:47 remaining. Lehkonen then tied it with 1:57 left when he one-timed a MacKinnon pass into the slot past Hart's glove side.

Necas and MacKinnon found the net in the shootout, while only Marner beat Wedgewood for Vegas.

--Field Level Media