Mackenzie Blackwood’s third regulation loss since joining the Avalanche was the first game he allowed more than two goals. Despite making 24 saves on 28 shots, Colorado failed to maintain a three-goal lead and lost 4-3 to the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night.

Blackwood stopped 23 of 27 shots in Thursday's 4-3 loss to the Oilers.

His path from prospect to potential Vezina Trophy candidate was non-linear, and included some dark days. But, beyond some better fortune with his health, one of the biggest realizations in his development was his ability to make flashy saves was not going to make him the consistent goaltender he wanted to be.

Patrolling crease versus Oilers

Since the Colorado Avalanche acquired Mackenzie Blackwood from the San Jose Sharks on Dec. 9, the team has been one of the hottest in the NHL, winning nine of 12 games and catapulting themselves into a playoff position in the new year.

Jared Bednar wasn’t happy with his team’s performance on Tuesday and made that clear postgame. But the Avalanche were still victorious, erasing a late third-period deficit before getting another overtime game-winning goal from Devon Toews.

Mackenzie Blackwood is having so much fun with the Avalanche. Also, Colorado starts a crucial three-game road trip with matchups against two teams ahead of them in the Central Division standings. The Wildcard race in the East is heating up,

But Colorado’s NHL team has long had a reputation for being a quiet bunch in the locker room, even when this group reached the top of the mountain in 2022. The 2024-25 edition started the season slow, bogged down by injuries and poor goaltending. It weighed on everyone. A generally quiet room seemed even more so at times.

Jan. 16, 2025, will be a date long remembered for one of the greatest regular-season comebacks in Edmonton Oilers history. Down 3-0 midway through the first period to the powerful Colorado Avalanche,

The Avalanche face off against the Dallas Stars at 2 p.m. MT in their first afternoon game of the season. The team plays another matinee against the Minnesota Wild on Monday.

Georgiev and the Sharks were playing an Islanders team that had lost five of its last eight games and entered eight points out of a playoff spot on Saturday. The Isles also ranked last in the NHL on both the penalty kill and the power play at 11.9% and penalty kill at 67.0%

Evan Bouchard scored with 6:55 left and the surging Edmonton Oilers overcame a three-goal deficit to beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 on Thursday night.