Avalanche Dominate Blues 6-1 Behind Necas’ Two Goals and Explosive Second Period.
DENVER, Colo. — The Colorado Avalanche continued their impressive start to the 2026-27 NHL season Saturday night, delivering a commanding 6-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues behind a strong offensive performance and another productive night from Martin Necas.
Necas led Colorado with two goals and an assist, while Nathan MacKinnon contributed three assists as the Avalanche secured their second consecutive victory to open the season.
Colorado established control early, with Necas and defenseman Cale Makar each scoring in the first period. The Avalanche maintained their momentum throughout the game, using their speed and offensive pressure to create scoring opportunities against St. Louis.
The second period proved decisive as Colorado scored four unanswered goals to extend its lead to 6-0. Defenseman Josh Manson started the second-period scoring at the 5:38 mark. Approximately six minutes later, Artturi Lehkonen capitalized on a mistake by Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington, intercepting a clearing attempt and scoring into an unguarded net. The Avalanche continued their offensive surge late in the period when Nicolas Roy and Necas scored just 23 seconds apart. Necas' second goal followed another puck-handling mistake by Binnington, completing Colorado's four-goal period and putting the game firmly out of reach. Necas has quickly established himself as a major offensive contributor this season. After recording the first 100-point campaign of his NHL career in 2025-26, he has already collected two goals and two assists through Colorado's opening two games. MacKinnon has also maintained his offensive production, recording five points through two games. The reigning Rocket Richard Trophy winner, who scored 53 goals last season, opened the new campaign with two goals in Colorado's 8-4 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday.
Defensively, the Avalanche delivered another strong performance behind goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood, who finished with 25 saves. Blackwood was close to recording a shutout before St. Louis forward Dalibor Dvorsky scored at 2:34 of the third period, accounting for the Blues' only goal of the night. The loss marked a difficult outing for Binnington, who surrendered six goals on 36 shots in his season debut. It was also the second consecutive meeting against Colorado in which he allowed six goals, following a matchup on December 31, 2025. For St. Louis, the defeat came one night after opening its season with a 4-0 victory over the Dallas Stars. The Blues struggled to establish consistent offensive pressure against Colorado, managing only four shots on goal in the opening period.
The Avalanche have now outscored their first two opponents 14-5, demonstrating the offensive depth and scoring ability that could make them a difficult matchup throughout the season. Colorado will look to maintain its unbeaten start when it travels to face the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday for its first road game of the season.
Meanwhile, St. Louis will attempt to rebound Tuesday night against the Chicago Blackhawks in the final game of its three-game road trip.
