Another night, another loss for the Colorado Avalanche--a condition now endemic for them. They lost on Tuesday night to the Minnesota Wild, 5-2.
The Avalanche held a 2-1 lead in the second period with less than three minutes left to play. The Avs scored on a Kevin Porter goal at 6:43 in the second and Paul Stastny followed with a power play goal at 16:11. Martin Havlat scored for the Wild in the first period.
But after a Ryan Wilson penalty for closing his hand on the puck, Andrew Brunette tied the game at two with 2:14 left in the second. Then in the third, the Wild added two more goals in a span of less than four minutes for a 4-2 lead. Kyle Brodziak got a shorthanded empty net goal to bring the final score to 5-2. Then when the final buzzer went off, Cody McLeod got angry and received a two-minute roughing penalty and a 10-minute game misconduct.
The Wild outshot the Avs, 30-24, with the Avs' Peter Budaj leaving the ice for the final two minutes or so of the game.
The Avs (26-32-8, 60 points) moved in to the No. 3 pick in the 2011 NHL draft with the loss. Since they defeated the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 18 to create a two-game winning streak, the Avs have dropped 18 of 20 games. They will look to beat the Anaheim Ducks on Friday in the Pepsi Center.