Colorado Avalanche goalie Mackenzie Blackwood has a message for any kids dreaming of playing in the NHL: take notes from Artturi Lehkonen.
asserted
Blackwood → have → Lehkonen
Lehkonen continued his scorching start to the season Saturday, scoring his 15th goal to help the short-handed Avalanche beat the Montreal Canadiens 4-1 without injured stars Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar.
asserted
Avalanche → continue → MacKinnon
“He just plays hockey the right way,” Blackwood said of his teammate.
asserted
Blackwood → play → teammate
“People talk about playing the right way, doing the right things — if kids want to know how to be an NHL player, they should just watch this guy play every night.”
asserted
guy → talk → things
Lehkonen, who also added an assist, gave Colorado a 3-1 lead at 4:14 of the third period, burying a rebound into a gaping net on the power play after Jakub Dobes made a pair of desperation saves.
asserted
Dobes → add → saves
The five-foot-11, 179-pound winger now has 21 points in 21 games, putting him well on pace to shatter his career highs of 27 goals and 51 points.
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winger → have → goals
“The detail, the competitiveness, plays way bigger than his size,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said.
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Bednar → play → size
“Watch the goals he scores, they’re all in the hard areas, in traffic.
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they → watch → traffic
“He’s consistently contributing to our success, and no nights off, plays hurt.
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He → contribute → success
Everything you want in a hockey player, he’s it.”
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he → want → player
Lehkonen was drafted by the Canadiens in the second round, 55th overall, in 2013.
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Lehkonen → draft → 2013
He spent six seasons in Montreal, helping the Canadiens reach the 2021 Stanley Cup final, but never scored more than 20 goals during his time in the hockey mecca.
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Canadiens → spend → mecca
The 31-year-old Finn is now on track for his fourth 20-goal campaign — to go with his Stanley Cup ring — since Montreal traded him to Colorado for Justin Barron and a second-round draft pick in 2022.
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Montreal → go → 2022
On Saturday, Lehkonen managed to make an impact without his usual linemate MacKinnon in the lineup or Makar running the power play.
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Makar → manage → play
MacKinnon, the league’s MVP in 2024, and two-time Norris Trophy winner Makar both exited Thursday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators with lower-body injuries.
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MacKinnon → exit → injuries
Colorado (12-6-3) will be without MacKinnon for at least a month, while Makar is expected to miss two weeks, Bednar said Saturday morning.
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Bednar → expect → weeks
“You can’t really replace them.
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You → replace → them
They’re two of the best players in the world,” Lehkonen said.
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Lehkonen → ’re → world
“So for us to have a gutsy road win like this, it’s really big, for sure.”
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it → have → this
It’s early, but Bednar liked what he saw from his group in their absence.
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he → ’ → absence
“That can galvanize your group, too,” he said.
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he → galvanize → group
“You’re trying to get your team to dig in in certain areas and it’s taking a while.
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it → try → while
You almost have no choice when you lose a couple of guys like that.”
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you → have → that
Already under pressure after Jacob Fowler leapfrogged him on Montreal’s depth chart, the Czech netminder surrendered a goal on the first shot he faced — for the second consecutive game — when Fedor Svechkov beat him on a two-on-one rush.
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Svechkov → leapfrog → rush
Brock Nelson later doubled Colorado’s lead with a one-timer from a tight angle, giving the Avalanche their second goal on just three shots.
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Nelson → double → shots
“Just a bounce,” Dobes said.
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Dobes → say → ?
“I don’t feel any different; I feel like every time we start a game they somehow get one in.
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they → feel → one
“I feel like the shooter had nothing to shoot at, but it’s just unfortunate.
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it → feel → nothing
But we’ll talk about it and we’ll have a better start next game.”
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we → talk → start
Dobes opened the season as Montreal’s No. 1 goalie after his spectacular play during last season’s run to the Eastern Conference final.
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Dobes → open → final
But while Fowler has emerged as a runaway favourite for the Calder Trophy, Dobes has stumbled out of the gate.
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Dobes → emerge → gate
He has posted a save percentage below .900 in every start except a strong season-opening win in Toronto.
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He → post → Toronto
Now he faces the challenge of regaining his confidence while sitting second in the Canadiens’ goaltending pecking order.
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he → face → order
“I wish I could play more, but that’s the situation and I gotta adjust to that and take the most out of it,” he said.
uncertain
he → wish → it
“I will keep working and hopefully we’ll get a better result next time.”
asserted
we → keep → result
The Canadiens (12-4-4) begin a three-game road trip Monday against the New York Rangers.
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Canadiens → begin → Rangers
They’ll then face the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday before closing out the trip Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes.
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They → face → Hurricanes
Will sophomore winger Ivan Demidov join the team?
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Demidov → join → team
Head coach Martin St. Louis said post-game that he didn’t know.
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he → say → ?
Demidov hasn’t played since Oct. 3 after suffering a foot injury while blocking a shot during the pre-season.
asserted
Demidov → play → season
…and 2 more, not listed.
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