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Gabriel Landeskog scored twice to power the Colorado Avalanche to a 6-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night, handing Toronto its fourth consecutive regulation loss.
Avalanche Pull Away in the Third Period
Landeskog delivered the decisive blow just 51 seconds after Jack Roslovic tied the game 3-3. The Colorado forward found himself completely alone in front of goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and made no mistake. Devon Toews contributed a goal and an assist, while Brock Nelson, Artturi Lehkonen, and Martin Necas — into an empty net — rounded out the scoring for Colorado.
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Cale Makar added two assists, and Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 28 shots to secure the win. The Avalanche improved to 11-6-2 on the season with the convincing road victory.
Leafs Struggle to Find Answers
Toronto’s Darren Raddysh opened the scoring with a shot clocked at 92.89 miles per hour. The NHL confirmed it was the fourth-fastest shot to result in a goal across the league this season. Roslovic and Eason Cowan also scored for the Leafs, each adding an assist as well. However, Toronto’s efforts were not enough. The Maple Leafs dropped to 8-10-2 and have now lost six of their last seven games.
Bobrovsky finished with 22 saves. The 38-year-old netminder, a two-time Stanley Cup champion and two-time Vezina Trophy winner, has allowed three or more goals in 12 of his 13 starts since signing as a free agent on July 1.
Injury Concerns Mount for Toronto
Roslovic returned to the lineup after missing Sunday’s 4-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils with a lower-body injury. Shutdown defenceman Chris Tanev also returned after sitting out for load management. Meanwhile, the Leafs added another name to their injury list. Veteran defenceman Morgan Rielly left the game with a lower-body injury and is listed as day-to-day.
Centre Colton Sissons remains out week-to-week with a lower-body injury. In addition, winger Kirill Marchenko and defencemen Marshall Rifai and Nick Blankenburg are also sidelined week-to-week with various injuries.
What’s Next
For Colorado, Makar had left Sunday’s practice in Denver with an unspecified injury. However, he skated in the morning session on Tuesday and declared himself ready to play. He delivered on that promise with a two-assist performance.
The Avalanche travel to Ottawa to face the Senators on Thursday. The Maple Leafs, meanwhile, return home to host the Minnesota Wild on the same night.
