Eurolanche

Avalanche hang on to beat Predators, 6-5

The Colorado Avalanche and Nashville Predators, two of the lowest-scoring teams in the NHL, put on a rare offensive display Monday with the Avalanche eventually prevailing 6-5. Matt Duchene and Aaron Palushaj each collected a goal and an assist for the Avalanche, who began the day averaging 2.3 goals per game. Five players each had a goal and an assist for the Predators, who were averaging 1.9 goals per game.

The teams combined for seven goals on 27 shots in the second period when the Avalanche chased Predators starting goalie Chris Mason with three goals in a 2:30 span and built a 6-4 lead. Nashville cut the lead to 6-5 when Shea Weber scored with 1:18 remaining in the third period.

The second-period scoring spree started when Duchene, who was clearly offside when he accepted a long pass from PA Parenteau, moved in on Mason and flipped the puck by his glove at 3:18, prompting plenty of protests by the Predators. After Nashville's Mike Fisher and Colin Wilson sandwiched goals around one by Colorado's Chuck Kobasew. Paul Stastny and Jamie McGinn scored 13 seconds apart for a 6-3 Avalanche lead. Stastny swept a rebound behind Mason at 13:33 and McGinn scored from the near the left hash marks at 13:46 off a pass from Duchene, who stole the puck from Weber behind the Nashville net. The two-goal barrage prompted Predators coach Barry Trotz to replace Mason (six goals, 18 shots) with Pekka Rinne.

The Predators closed to 6-4 with 49.6 seconds left in the period when Blum put a shot behind Avalanche goalie Semyon Varlamov from just inside the blue line.

The Avalanche skated to a quick 2-0 lead on goals by Palushaj and Tyson Barrie, whose first career NHL goal also was the first goal scored by a Colorado defenseman this season. Palushaj was credited with a goal in three games at 3:43 of the opening period after his shot off the end boards bounced into the crease behind Mason, who inadvertently kicked the puck into the net with his right skate. Barrie, playing in his 17th NHL game, beat Mason with a shot from the left point on a power play at 9:30 before the Predators answered with a power-play goal by Kostitsyn at 17:20.

Predators center Paul Gaustad suffered an upper body injury in the first period and didn't return.

-by Rick Sadowski for NHL.com-

Avalanche Line Up