Cale Makar was back in the Avalanche lineup Wednesday night, and Colorado still walked away with a result that felt hard to explain.
After missing Tuesday’s game while he and his wife welcomed twin boys, Makar returned for the second half of the back-to-back against Dallas at Ball Arena. He logged 22 minutes and 54 seconds and gave Colorado a needed lift on the blue line. But the night ended in a 3-2 shootout loss to the Stars, with Roope Hintz scoring the winner in the fourth round.
The game never settled into a clean rhythm for the Avalanche. Colorado thought it had struck first in the opening period when Jaden Schwartz scored, only for Dallas to win the challenge for offside. Later in the frame, Gabriel Landeskog appeared to finish another chance, but officials ruled the puck had been kicked in with a distinct kicking motion, wiping that goal away too.
That left the Avalanche with two disallowed goals before the first period was over, a rough start to a night that only got stranger.
Colorado finally got one to count in the second period when Landeskog scored again, this time legally. Dallas answered not long after through Miro Heiskanen to make it 1-1. The Stars then grabbed a 2-1 lead early in the third period when Arttu Hyry intercepted a play involving Makar near the blue line and turned it into a shorthanded breakaway goal.
The Avalanche responded again. Brock Nelson tied it 2-2, sending the game into overtime and eventually the shootout, where Hintz delivered the deciding goal to help Dallas split the two-game set.
Nazem Kadri finished with two assists for Colorado, and Casey DeSmith made 25 saves for the Stars. The Avalanche came out of the night at 4-2-1, while Dallas moved to 3-3-1.
For Makar, the return came during a week that carried a much bigger personal meaning than the final score. For Colorado, the challenge now is putting a bizarre loss behind it and turning the emotion of the week into a win.
In Other News...
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Stars Stay In The Avalanche Race After Another Tight Battle
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Jaden Schwartz has been part of the early push for Colorado, while Brock Nelson has also helped steady the Avalanche as they keep building through the opening stretch. Colorado now gets a more favorable run of games ahead, and if it takes advantage, the Stars may have to chase a little harder just to keep pace. [Read more 🡒]