Colorado Avalanche forward Ross Colton was ejected for cross-checking New Jersey Devils winger Timo Meier in the second period of Tuesday's contest, kicking off a fiery special-teams battle.

Colton was handed a major and a game misconduct on the play, but he also earned a minor penalty for boarding Devils rookie Luke Hughes earlier in the sequence. Hughes was slow to get up, but ultimately got to his feet under his own power and returned to the contest later in the middle frame.

Here's a closer look at Colton's transgressions:

Colton was initially assessed a major for boarding Hughes, but it was reduced to a minor after review.

Next, the two teams exchanged blows during the Devils' ensuing seven-minute power play. Meier kicked things off with a revenge goal, which came on a 5-on-3 advantage since Colorado had a player in the box serving a penalty for too many men:

Miles Wood made things interesting for the Avalanche by scoring a shorthanded goal a mere 41 seconds after Meier's tally:

Shortly after Wood's goal, Devils forward Alexander Holtz took an interference penalty so there was two minutes of four-on-four action, but Dougie Hamilton made sure New Jersey got the last word once his team was back on the man advantage:

The Avalanche successfully killed off the remainder of Colton's major penalty after Hamilton's goal.

At the end of the eventful sequence, the contest was tied 3-3.

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