It was hard to believe Nail Yakupov had just come off the ice after being the named the first star of the game following his two-point performance drove the Colorado Avalanche to a 6-3 victory over the Boston Bruins in their home opener. Before speaking, he took a long swig from the protein concoction the training staff provides all players after the game. He noticed my smirk and matched it with one of his own.
“It’s actually pretty good,” Yakupov said with his trademark smile, remaining as cool as can be.
The 24-year-old winger registered his third goal of the season on a one-timer from Nathan MacKinnon just 60 seconds into the second period to give the Avalanche a 2-1 lead.