RTP Daily, September 3rd: Avs Push it to Seven
The Stars couldn’t close out the series, while the Islanders and Golden Knights have the chance to do so tonight.
For a playoff year that was expected to pack plenty of chaos given the break, it was surprising to see the first round come and go without a single game seven. The good teams moved on, the couple upsets were executed swiftly, and it left us without that sweet taste of game seven adrenaline that we so desperately crave. But with the Colorado Avalanche tying things up against the Dallas Stars in last night’s game six, we finally have our treat.
Saturday’s Games
Colorado Avalanche 4, Dallas Stars 1, series tied 3-3
- For a game that felt pretty even throughout, the Avalanche really ran away with the score by the end scoring twice in the third period. Rantanen’s goal to make the game 3-1 felt like the turning point, by which point the Avs were playing too strong for the Stars to make a comeback, adding the empty-netter to seal it./
MacKinnon 👉 Rantanen 🥅 #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/bTXgvmMYIr
— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) September 3, 2020
- Each team received a goal from their young star defenceman as well in Cale Makar and Miro Heiskanen, who have both been a treat to watch these playoffs. Between them, Quinn Hughes, Thomas Chabot and a few others, we’ve entered a new era for elite modern defencemen in the NHL, fostered by Erik Karlsson almost a decade ago.
- With game seven on the horizon, Colorado may have a couple more injuries piling onto their ever-growing list, with captain Gabriel Landeskog and young defencemen Conor Timmins both going down with injuries. Neither returned for the third period, so the status of both key players will be a major storyline to watch heading into Friday’s series-deciding battle.
- Nathan MacKinnon continues to do Nathan MacKinnon things, continuing his streak with a point in every single game since he entered the bubble./
Nathan MacKinnon running practice drills during games pic.twitter.com/aSJiGNKK7n
— Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) September 3, 2020
Sunday’s Games
Philadelphia Flyers @ New York Islanders, 7:00pm ET, NYI leads series 3-2
Vegas Golden Knights @ Vancouver Canucks, 9:45pm ET, VGK leads series 3-2
My inner tennis fan would be remiss to mention that all seven Canadian players have US Open matches today as well, for some entertaining pre-game action.