DENVER — The Avalanche's undefeated streak at home continues — but just barely.
After falling behind by a pair of goals in the first period, the Wild responded with a gutsy rally before falling 4-3 to Colorado in a shootout on Monday afternoon at Ball Arena. It snapped the Wild's three-game win streak.
Colorado has won 14 in a row on home ice.
Mikko Rantanen scored the lone goal in the shootout, this after Kirill Kaprizov twice tied the game in the third period.
His second equalizer came with 2:51 left in the third period, with goalie Kaapo Kahkonen pulled for a sixth skater. It was the 11th time this season the Wild has scored with its goalie pulled.
The Avs took a 3-2 lead less than a minute earlier after video review determined Nathan MacKinnon scored at 16:28 on a redirect that appeared to get lodged under Kahkonen's left leg.
Earlier in the third period, Kaprizov's shot dribbled behind goalie Pavel Francouz 6:46 in in to tie the game at two.
The Avalanche scored both of its goals in the first period after back-to-back penalties by the Wild.
Rantanen collected a bounce off the end boards and lifted it by Kahkonen from along the goal line at 15:57 for a 5-on-3 power play goal. Then, just seconds after the Wild was back to full strength, Alex Newhook converted on a one-timer at 17:39.
Colorado finished 1-for-4 on the power play and the Wild went 0-for-2.
In the second, the Wild started to chip away at its deficit, with Kevin Fiala starting the comeback only 33 seconds into the period when he cut to the middle with a Matt Boldy pass and flicked a backhander by the Avalanche's Darcy Kuemper.
Boldy and Newhook were teammates at Boston College last season.
Kuemper, the former Wild goalie, started the game for Colorado but left the action later in the second with 12 saves after a collision with the Wild's Jordan Greenway. Kuemper was replaced by Francouz, who had 24 stops in relief.
A strong finish to the second by the Wild spilled over into the third period where the team dominated at the outset, pressure that culminated in Kaprizov first goal of the night.
He has 16 for the season, and 12 points in his past six games.
Kahkonen made 36 saves for the Wild.
Francouz stopped Mats Zuccarello, Fiala and Kaprizov in the shootout. MacKinnon was stopped on Colorado's first shot, but Rantanen scored on its second.
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