Blackwood Makes 35 Saves as Avalanche Shut Out Predators 3–0

AP Photo/John Amis

MacKenzie Blackwood delivered a flawless performance Saturday night in Nashville, stopping all 35 shots he faced to backstop the Colorado Avalanche to a 3–0 victory over the Nashville Predators. The shutout marked Blackwood’s first of the season and the fifteenth of his career. Colorado defenseman Brent Burns opened the scoring just fifteen seconds into the game. After a puck battle in the right corner, the puck reached Burns above the right circle, where he fired a wrist shot past Nashville goaltender Juuse Saros on the Avalanche’s first shot of the night. Despite being outshot 16–6 in the first period, the Avalanche maintained their 1–0 lead thanks to Blackwood’s sharp play. Nashville continued to apply pressure throughout the night, but Blackwood denied every opportunity, including a critical backhand chance from Michael McCarron with 5:47 remaining in the third period. The Predators, returning to North America after a Global Series trip to Stockholm, Sweden, have now been shut out in consecutive games and have lost seven of their last eight. Saros finished with 23 saves in the loss. Captain Roman Josi returned to the lineup after missing twelve games with an upper-body injury.

Colorado sealed the game in the final minutes with a pair of empty-net goals. Nathan MacKinnon scored with 1:35 left in regulation, extending his goal streak to three in his last two outings, and Jack Drury added another with 51 seconds remaining. The Avalanche have now won eight straight games, their longest streak since their nine-game run in March 2024. Notably, star defenseman Cale Makar failed to record a point in a road game for the first time this season.

Colorado remains perfect in games where they have been outshot, improving to 5–0–0 in such situations this year.

Up Next:The Avalanche travel to face the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday, while the Predators host the Florida Panthers on Monday.