Nathan MacKinnon scored 32 seconds into overtime and the Avalanche fended off the pesky New York Islanders 5-4 for its fifth win in six outings Tuesday night at Ball Arena.
MacKinnon’s goal came after Valeri Nichushkin drew a penalty late in regulation, and was his third point of the game. Nichushkin brought the Avalanche back from a deficit for the third time with a third-period power-play goal. Cale Makar’s stick exploded on a one-timer from the top of the zone, but the puck went right to MacKinnon at the side of the net. He bumped it to Nichushkin, who turned it into an unorthodox tic-tac-toe tally and his second goal of the night with 7:39 remaining.