Denver, Colorado – A closely contested NHL match between the Colorado Avalanche and the San Jose Sharks is underway at Ball Arena as of . The Avalanche took a 1-0 lead in the second period, with Artturi Lehkonen scoring at 4:13, assisted by Valeri Nichushkin and Cale Makar. The game remains scoreless in the first period.
The Avalanche currently lead the Western Conference with a record of 36-9-9, holding a strong position at home with a 20-3-4 record. The Sharks, with a record of 27-23-4, are struggling on the road, posting a 13-14-1 record away from San Jose. The game is being refereed by Gord Dwyer and Corey Syvret, with Brandon Gawryletz and Jonathan Deschamps serving as linesmen.
Early penalties have marked the game. Zakhar Bardakov of the Avalanche received a two-minute penalty for hooking at 10:18 in the second period. Prior to that, Philipp Kurashev of the Sharks was penalized at 4:20 in the second period. Earlier in the game, penalties were assessed to K. Sherwood (Sharks) at 3:49, Alexander Wennberg (Sharks) at 3:37, and Brock Nelson (Avalanche) and Parker Kelly (Avalanche) at 3:34 and 3:21 respectively.
The Avalanche boast a strong offensive lineup, with Nathan MacKinnon leading the team in scoring with 40 goals and 51 assists. Cale Makar is also a key player, contributing 15 goals and 41 assists. The Sharks are relying on players like William Smith and Mario Celebrini, though their statistics were not detailed in available game information.
Both teams have experienced recent injuries. Colorado’s Gabriel Landeskog is sidelined with an upper-body injury, with an estimated return date of . Martin Necas is also out with a lower-body injury, expected to return on the same date. San Jose is missing Ryan Reaves and Ty Dellandrea, both with injuries and projected returns of . Veteran Logan Couture is also currently injured, with a return expected on .
As of 10:41 in the second period, Macklin Celebrini won a face-off against Jack Drury. The game saw a TV timeout at the same time.
Goaltending is proving crucial. Mackenzie Blackwood is in net for the Avalanche, having saved 8 shots out of 8, maintaining a save percentage of 1.000. Yaroslav Askarov is defending the Sharks’ goal, with 24 saves from 27 shots, achieving a save percentage of 0.889.
The Sharks and Avalanche previously met on December 11th, with the Avalanche winning 6-0. A second game was played on November 27th, with results not specified in the available data.
Looking at the broader NHL standings, the Vegas Golden Knights lead the Western Conference with 64 points, followed by the Edmonton Oilers also with 64 points. The Anaheim Ducks have 63 points, and the Seattle Kraken have 61. The Colorado Avalanche are close behind with 81 points. In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Bruins lead with 64 points, followed by the Florida Panthers with 60 points. The San Jose Sharks currently have 58 points, placing them lower in the Western Conference standings.
Other notable NHL scores from include the Wild defeating the Predators 3-2, the Red Wings beating the Mammoth 3-0, the Blues overcoming the Stars 2-1, the Oilers edging the Flames 1-1, the Kraken defeating the Kings 2-1, the Canucks losing to the Golden Knights 0-2, and the Bruins defeating the Panthers in a shootout. The Blackhawks also defeated the Blue Jackets 2-0, and the Canadiens beat the Jets 3-2.
Recent NHL news includes a trade involving the Kings acquiring Artemi Panarin from the Rangers. The league is also preparing for the 2027 NHL Stadium Series matchup, details of which were recently revealed. Martin Saban is reportedly joining the Predators’ GM search committee.
