The Columbus Blue Jackets came in losing five straight and the Colorado Avalanche had lost seven of their past nine, including three straight on home ice. In the past three encounters to Pepsi Center, the Blue Jackets had taken three of the previous four meetings.
So something had to give.
A unit looking to reset and take a deep breath in the thin mountain air, Alexander Wennberg embodied those who most definitely needed to get off to a quick start. His primary assist set up Oliver Bjorkstrand with an early 1-0 lead less than a minute into the game, at 53 seconds to start.