Backup goaltender Pavel Francouz got the start in place of injured Darcy Kuemper and made 24 saves as the Colorado Avalanche opened up a two games to none lead in the Western Conference Final with a 4-0 shutout victory over the Edmonton Oilers at Ball Arena in Denver.
Artturi Lehkonen and Mikko Rantanen each scored a goal and and added an assist, and Nazem Kadri collected three helpers for the Avalanche.
Nathan MacKinnon scored his tenth of the playoffs on a third period power play to complete and Josh Manson produced the other Colorado goal.
After getting pulled in Game 1, Mike Smith returned to the net and finished with 36 saves on 40 shots.
The Avalanche limited scoring leader Connor McDavid to two shots on goal.
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Tonight’s game
New York Rangers at Tampa Bay Lightning (New York leads 1-0) 8 p.m. ESPN
Pregame at Blueshirt Banter and Raw Charge
No Jack Adams for Andrew Brunette
Darryl Sutter of the Calgary Flames won the Jack Adams Award on Thursday, presented to the coach who has “contributed the most to his team’s success” by members of the NHL Broadcasters’ Association. Andrew Brunette of the Florida Panthers and Gerard Gallant of the New York Rangers were the other finalists for the award.