Denver, Colo. - The Colorado Avalanche stamped their mark on Game 4 with a resounding 4-0 win over the Dallas Stars to tie the series at 2. Samuel Girard put on one of his best performances of the season, capped off with the fourth goal of the game in the third period. Mackenzie Blackwood earned his first ever postseason shutout in just his fourth ever postseason performance.
And who wasn't a little emotional when Captain Gabriel Landeskog scored his first goal since June 20th, 2022? In just his second NHL game since returning from an injury that kept him away from professional hockey for three seasons, he worked with his teammates on the second line to score the game's third goal.
First goal since June 20th, 2022. #GoAvsGohttps://t.co/ipb2XluNTl
— Bailey Curtis (@baileyycurtis) April 27, 2025
I've envisioned scoring again for a long time. and then there were obviously days where I didn't know if I was ever going to get the score again. So obviously feels good. It's a tight playoff series and a big game here at home, get to do it in front of our fans. Obviously means a lot. So super exciting. Hopefully more to come."- Landeskog on scoring his first NHL goal since returning.
How the Game Shook Out
The Avalanche played a dominant game after dropping Wednesday's home match 2-1 in overtime.
The first period saw Logan O'Connor rise to the occasion while his team was on the penalty kill, creating a turnover at the Avalanche blue line and carrying it up the ice. He found himself one-on-one with Jake Oettinger and snapped the puck over Oettinger's blocker on the near side and scored, putting Colorado up 1-0.
SHEEEEEEEESSH 😮💨#GoAvsGo | #BuiltDifferentpic.twitter.com/Odli9PMcmP
— x - Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 27, 2025
Nathan MacKinnon didn't want to miss out on the fun, though, showing that both special teams came to dominate. He finds himself all alone in the left faceoff circle, receives a pass from Jonathan Drouin, and his shot, somehow, sneaks through Oettinger's pad and into the net. The period ended shortly after that, making it 2-0 heading into the second period.
While the scoring may not show it, the game only became more dangerous thanks to the Avalanche.
While the first period statistics seemed a little even with shots at 12-11 and high-danger chances 3-2, both in favor of the Avalanche, the second period saw Colorado keep Dallas at just 5 shots-for while they nailed 8 high-danger chances on Oettinger.
Among those high-danger chances, surprisingly, was not Landeskog's one-timer from the slot to make it 3-0. The pass from linemate Brock Nelson was swift and clean, and Landeskog found himself open in the slot to slap it past Oettinger in his first goal in 1,041 days.
OUR CAPTAIN IS BUILT DIFFERENT‼️#GoAvsGo | #BuiltDifferentpic.twitter.com/q7S97ApUKR
— x - Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 27, 2025
Going into the third period, the Stars decided to sit Oettinger in favor of getting some game time in for backup goaltender Casey DeSmith.
The Avalanche played half a period before Girard found the team's fourth goal. Landeskog battled in front of the net with Stars' Lian Bichsel, a 6-foot-7 defenseman, creating a bit of turmoil in front of DeSmith, making it a little easier for Girard's shot from the blue line to make it through.
The night ended 4-0 in favor of Colorado, who also led shots 48-23 and high-danger chances 17-6.
A Lot to Be Happy With, A Lot to Improve
Saturday's win forces a Game 6, which will bring the series back to Denver on May 1st. This gives Colorado an opportunity to win on home ice to bring the team into round 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Head Coach Jared Bednar was pleased with the game, going as far as to say, "I can't find a player on our roster I didn't like tonight."
We were just on our toes. It was highly competitive. Puck decisions were all good. Guys were willing to skate with the puck and force them to defend -- some of the things we've been talking about for a few games now, and it came together there for a while tonight, which was good to see. I thought it continued in the third period a little bit too.- Coach Bednar on the team's performance on Saturday
Earlier in the series, Bednar talked about not getting enough out of his top guys, which included the second line, and when asked, seemed like the second line he reworked for Wednesday's game also worked in their favor on Saturday, too.
That's two good home games from those guys. [Nichushkin], [Nelson], [Landeskog] on there, that's been a good line for us, in the last two home games, and on both sides of the puck. It's not just about production. Certainly, we need production spread out through our lineup. You got to come up with enough chances to be able to put some by these guys. And we did that tonight. The other night we had a little bit of a tough time. But on the defensive side of it, they've been really good too.- Coach Bednar on the second line.
Dallas Head Coach Pete DeBoer also seemed a little disappointed following Saturday's game, but during media availability before their flight back to Dallas, seems to have a good view on the series so far:
If you had told me at Christmas we were going to go into the first round of the playoffs against Colorado, and we were going to be without [Miro] Heiskanen and [Jason] Robertson, and we'd be 2-2 coming home with home ice advantage, I think I would have been pretty happy. Sometimes you have to have that perspective that this group has battled pretty hard under some serious adversity, and we're in a pretty good spot.- Coach DeBoer on surprises during the series so far.
What's Next?
Game 5 will be played in Dallas on Monday, 4/28, at 7:30 pm MT/8:30 pm CT.
Game 6 is scheduled for Thursday, May 1st, at Ball Arena in Denver. A start time has not been released yet.
If necessary, Game 7 is scheduled for Saturday, May 3rd, at American Airlines Center in Dallas. No start time will be released until the game becomes necessary.