Avs-Stars Game 6 slapshots: Mikko Rantanen’s revenge game falls short as Colorado forces Game 7

Instant reaction from the Avalanche s - win over the Dallas Stars in Contest of their first-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series Momentum swings galore After the Avs got run out of the American Airlines Center earlier this week in a - defeat that put their season on the brink a encounter in which the Stars scored their fastest goal in playoff history just nine seconds into the match Colorado came out on fire on Thursday The Avs scored twice in a dominant opening period first when Valeri Nichushkin s shot deflected off the skate of Stars defender Ilya Lyubushkin and into the net Then Cale Makar s duffed slapshot was put home by a waiting Artturi Lehkonen Ball Arena was rockin until it wasn t as the Stars scored four second-period goals to take command of the contest Nichushkin s second goal of the match on a sweet rebound tied it - in the third before Dallas delivered the knockout blow in the third to itself Mikko s revenge Avs fans have had a short memory for Mikko Rantanen this series all but forgetting about the Moose s seasons with Colorado and his pivotal role in a Stanley Cup win Rantanen s made the Avs pay for trading him away to Carolina in January He started slow in this series but discovered his groove when it matters most of and now has eight points in the series That included a goal and two assists in Dallas romp in Tournament then the go-ahead goal late in the second period on Thursday The puck was tied up in a scrum on the boards but then Roope Hintz zipped a pass to a streaking Rantanen down the center of the ice Rantanen easily wristed it home and the boos this instant rained down upon the Finnish forward He also had three assists on the night for Dallas quick-strike offense Without him it would ve been a blowout Defensive question marks The Avs D and goalie Mackenzie Blackwood were sketchy for a second straight event Despite Colorado outshooting Dallas by a wide margin all three periods the final tally ended up being - the Stars keep finding their way back into the match The majority of their goals came off clean looks at the net as the Stars consistently identified themselves with free or odd-man rushes at the net In Match can the Colorado defense find a way to settle in and prevent another shootout Meanwhile it was the Dallas defense that delivered the ultimate letdown midway through the third to put Colorado up - Nathan MacKinnon got credit for an unassisted goal but it was really self-sabotage by the Stars Sam Steel tried to clear the puck but it hit off Colin Blackwell s shoulder and went in the top right shelf causing goalie Jake Oettinger to look at them both in disbelief The Avs added two empty netters by Josh Manson and Cale Makar in the last Battle here we come