The Avalanche wasted no time turning Saturday night into a statement start in Denver.
After a slow opening stretch, Colorado settled in, took control and buried two early chances to build a 2-0 lead over the Blues before the first intermission. Cale Makar and Martin Necas did the damage in the opening period, and the Avalanche never let St. Louis breathe.
The game opened with a brief lull, as three icing calls arrived in the first 36 seconds. Once Colorado found its rhythm, the chances came fast. Jaden Schwartz had one of the better looks early on, but Jordan Binnington stretched out across the crease and flashed the splits to keep it out.
Makar broke through at 4:10 of the first for his first goal of the season. Nathan MacKinnon fed Necas in the low slot, Necas moved in on Binnington and slipped the puck across to Makar at the doorstep. Binnington lunged with a diving effort, but he was too late getting over as Makar finished for a 1-0 lead.
St. Louis nearly answered around the eight-minute mark when Dalibor Dvorsky found Jonatan Berggren in the slot for a dangerous chance. The left side of the net was open, but Makar got a stick on Berggren and tied him up before the shot could get away.
Colorado then went to its first power play after Zach Dean was called for slashing T.J. Hughes, but the Avalanche couldn’t cash in despite coming into the night 4-for-5 on the man advantage on opening night.
The second period brought more of the same from Colorado, and Josh Manson made it 3-0 at 5:38 with a one-timer off a feed from Nic Roy at the point. The puck deflected off Binnington’s stick and into the net.
Roy then headed to the box for slashing on the next sequence, giving the Blues their first crack on the power play, but Colorado’s penalty kill handled it. By the halfway point of the period, the Avalanche were outshooting St. Louis 17-9.
Nicolas Roy pushed the lead to 5-0 with 1:58 left in the period, ripping a wrist shot past Binnington. Then came another costly mistake from the Blues goalie, who tried to play the puck behind the net again and left the crease exposed. MacKinnon beat him to it and fed Necas in the low slot for a simple finish and a six-goal cushion.
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