Jonathan Drouin scored two goals and added an assist, Martin Necas scored his first goal with Colorado, and the Avalanche defeated the St. Louis Blues 5-0 in Denver on Friday night.
Mackenzie Blackwood recorded 19 saves for his first shutout with Colorado and his second of the season. Cale Makar and Joel Kiviranta also scored, helping Necas and Jack Drury have a successful debut in Denver.
The Avalanche traded for Necas and Drury on January 24, sending leading scorer Mikko Rantanen to the Hurricanes.
Joel Hofer stopped 31 shots for St. Louis, which has now lost four straight games and five of its last six.
Drouin got Colorado on the board early in the first period when Juuso Parssinen passed the puck from behind the net, and Drouin tipped it in out of midair at 4:57.
Necas made it 2-0 less than three minutes later when he carried the puck into the zone and fired a shot past Hofer at 7:39 for his fifth point since the trade.
The Avalanche’s power play, which had been quiet recently, scored in the latter part of the first period. Drouin scored his second goal at 14:43 when Alexey Toropchenko’s clearing attempt went right to Drouin, and he beat Hofer with a high shot. It was his second two-goal game of the season.
Colorado scored again on the power play when they passed the puck around the St. Louis zone to Makar at the point. Makar drifted to his right and fired a wrist shot through a screen into the net at 17:25.
It was the first time Colorado scored two power-play goals in a game since December 19. Kiviranta sealed the win with a goal at 13:21 of the third period.
