12-25-2019, 01:17 AM
DENVER -- Matt Duchenes strong start has been mirrored by his team. Stitched Oilers Jerseys . Duchene scored two goals and had an assist, helping the Colorado Avalanche beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Friday night to match the best 10-game start in team history. "Its special, going from where weve gone the last year," Duchene said, recalling the Avalanches 15th-place finish in the Western Conference last season. "It feels great to be 9-1, the best team in the league. "But you cant be satisfied. We know how fast that can turn. Weve been there before early in seasons and really slowed down going down the stretch. So weve got to keep on moving the way we are." Erik Johnson and Alex Tanguay also scored for the Avalanche, who topped Carolina at home for the ninth straight time. Semyon Varlamov made 28 saves in the win. "I think its a new attitude," said forward Paul Stastny, crediting much of the turnaround to the influence of first-year coach Patrick Roy. "Obviously, weve had the goaltending and we have a lot of depth. I think were all playing together and sacrificing for each other. "Were doing the little things right, and you do that over the course of 60 minutes, over the course of a season, and the puck is going to bounce your way." Carolina, which got goals from Drayson Bowman and Andrej Sekera, came into the game scrambling at the goalie position. Justin Peters, recalled from Charlotte of the AHL earlier this month, made his first start of the season because of injuries to the Hurricanes top two goalies and stopped 30 shots. "Hes battling in there," Hurricanes coach Kirk Muller said. "A couple of those plays were odd-number situations, two on one. Guys losing their assignments put him in a vulnerable spot." Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward left Thursdays game at Minnesota in the first period with a lower-body injury, and Anton Khudobin has missed five games, also with a lower-body injury that has landed him on the injured list. Carolina recalled Mike Murphy from Charlotte on an emergency basis as an additional backup before the game. The Avalanche were on the power play when Duchene wristed a shot from between the circles into the net for his second goal of the night and his team-high eighth overall. That gave Colorado a 4-1 lead 36 seconds into the third. Carolina fought back with a goal by Sekera at 2:40. The Hurricanes had a chance to get even closer when they were on the power play midway through the period, but were turned away by Varlamov, who made consecutive saves. He stopped a shot from point-blank range by Alexander Semin. Colorado pressured the Hurricanes in their zone from the outset, taking a 2-0 lead while putting up 18 shots to Carolinas eight in the first period. "They came out ready to play," Peters said. "We knew they were going to come out ready. They have a great atmosphere here and have a great record at home. They had some chances, got some bounces there. Theyre real quick. All their guys can skate real well. Theyre fast, theyre hungry. They really battle hard on pucks as a team. When you have that skill level and confidence, it goes a long way." Johnson finished a 3-on-2 rush at 11:30 of the first by knocking the puck off his skate past Peters. Duchene scored his team-leading seventh goal of the season six minutes later, coming around the back of the net and wristing a shot that trickled in off Peters right leg. Carolina pulled within 2-1 when Bowman, off a centring pass from Jordan Staal, one-timed a shot from the right circle that got past Varlamov. But the Avalanche regained a two-goal advantage at 10:11 of the second. Duchene sent a pass toward the slot where the streaking Tanguay picked it up and wristed it into the net for his third goal. NOTES: Carolinas Radek Dvorak didnt return after leaving the game in the second period with a lower-body injury. ... Carolinas Tim Gleason played in his 600th NHL game. ... The Avs, who matched their best 10-game start, play six of their next seven at home. ... Carolina last won a game at Colorado in 1996 when they were the Hartford Whalers. Edmonton Oilers Shirts . The Eastern Conference-leading Celtics finished their recent trek at 3-1 on Monday in Salt Lake City when Rajon Rondo made a key jumper with 24.1 seconds remaining, as Boston held off the Utah Jazz, 107-102, at EnergySolutions Arena. Edmonton Oilers Store . Marek Hamsik, who had earlier missed a penalty, headed Napoli in front in the 23rd minute and Pandev added a second goal five minutes from halftime. Alessandro Matri got Juventus back into the game just after the break but Pandev was on hand to score again in the 68th. https://www.cheapoilers.com/ .FIFA says it is relaxing the rule which forced match officials to leave its international list at the end of the year they turned 45.Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - John Wall scored the last 10 Washington points in the second overtime, leading the Wizards to a 133-132 win over the Boston Celtics on Monday night. The Wizards led by as many as 23 points in the third quarter but allowed the Celtics to come back and force overtime on Evan Turners 3-pointer with 0.6 seconds left in regulation. Earlier, Turner scored seven points during a 15-0 run in the fourth quarter that completed Bostons comeback from a 23-point deficit. The Celtics led by as many as seven points in the first overtime but scored only two pooints in the last two minutes of the frame. Cheap Oilers Jerseys. The win gave the Wizards a split of a home-and-home after dropping the opener 101-93 in Boston on Sunday. The Celtics comeback on Monday was fueled by its bench, which combined to score 82 points in the game. Jeff Green was the only starter to play all 10 overtime minutes as reserves Marcus Smart and Kelly Olynyk led the way. Celtics coach Brad Stevens said it was a no-brainer sticking with his bench players down the stretch. Those guys deserved to play at the end because they got us right back in it, he said. ' ' '