Right before a three-day break, the Arizona Coyotes fell 4-1 to the Central Division leaders, the Colorado Avalanche.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!A few seconds after a power play expired, Bowen Byram received a pass from Ross Colton, fired a shot through two Coyote defenders and scored 8:37 into the first period.
On the other end of the ice, Alexandar Georgiev denied almost any opportunity from the ‘Yotes that came his way, saving 24-of-25 shots he faced.
Arizona ended the first-20 minutes of play by outshooting the Avalanche 12-8, but the Coyotes would see the momentum fall out of their grasp.
Colorado’s speed, crisp passing and offensive pressure caused havoc in the Coyotes defensive zone, which resulted in a three-goal second period.
Valeri Nichushkin, Fredrik Olofsson and Josh Manson would all extend the Avs lead to 4-0.
Not only were they down by four, but Arizona lost J.J. Moser after suffering an upper-body injury following a hit by Miles Wood. As retaliation, Lawson Crouse dropped the gloves and fought Wood.
The Avalanche pushed the Coyotes to the outside when in puck possession and their aggressive back check interrupted any hopes of Arizona coming back.
Alex Kerfoot tipped a shot by Michael Carcone past Georgiev, but that was as close as the Coyotes were to catching Colorado.
With an assist on Nichushkin’s goal, Nathan MacKinnon increased his point streak to 18-straight games. MacKinnon is second in the NHL in points with 54 (18 goals, 36 assists).
Colorado heads into Christmas 21-11-2 and move up to first place in the Central Division with 44 points.
As for the Coyotes, their four-game winning streak they had coming into tonight was snapped. However, they will stay fifth in the division with a 17-14-2 record.
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Alec Cipollini is a reporter of the Arizona Coyotes and Cardinals for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account @AlecCipollini
