DENVER (AP) 鈥� Darcy Kuemper had his and was still able to lift his stick just enough to deflect a shot down low.
It was just that kind of night for the Colorado Avalanche goaltender.
Kuemper stopped a career-best 46 shots in his fourth shutout of the season, Nathan MacKinnon scored twice and the Avalanche beat the Calgary Flames 3-0 on Sunday.
鈥淚 liked his game a lot,鈥� Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said of Kuemper. 鈥淗e was sharp from start to finish.鈥�
That's a stark contrast to last weekend against the Flames when Kuemper wasn't sharp and pulled early in the second period as Calgary claimed a 4-3 overtime win.
鈥淒efinitely a different outcome, for sure,鈥� Kuemper cracked. 鈥淲inning鈥檚 a lot more fun, for sure. It was a big win for us.鈥�
MacKinnon scored on a power play in the first period and added another goal in the third. Mikko Rantanen sealed it on an empty-net tally with 1:38 remaining to help the Avalanche post their best record through 60 games in franchise history (42-13-5, 89 points).
Dan Vladar made 29 saves in a match between the top two teams in the Western Conference.
The Flames were playing the second game of a back-to-back, but hardly looked sluggish and controlled the tempo early in the game. They also had double the shots of Colorado in the third period.
鈥淚t was a hard-fought game,鈥� Flames coach Darryl Sutter said. 鈥淣o issues with our game at all.鈥�
Kuemper came up with timely save after timely save Sunday, including a blind block with his stick in the third as teammate Kurtis MacDermid fell into him.
Even Kuemper's not quite sure how he stopped that.
鈥淚 felt something 鈥� I don鈥檛 know if it was 鈥楧ermi鈥� hitting me or the puck,鈥� said Kuemper, who earned his career-best 28th win of the season. 鈥淚 was just trying to sprawl out and get over there the best I could.鈥�
The Flames stayed in the game during the second period thanks to Vladar. He stopped a wide-open shot by Erik Johnson by sliding over and deflecting the puck with his left pad.
About 15 seconds later, Andre Burakovsky dinged a shot off the post. And then, he faced a goaltender's nightmare: MacKinnon open in front of the net. But Vladar's arm blocked his shot.
Kuemper also came up big on a 2-on-1 break by the Flames.
MacKinnon scored his 20th goal of the season on a wrist shot that got by Vladar midway through the first period to give Colorado a 1-0 lead. The Avalanche thought they added another a few minutes later when Alex Newhook鈥檚 shot beat Vladar, clanging off .
Newhook even lifted his stick in celebration as the goal-horn sounded, but the official motioned to keep playing. Replays showed the puck never crossed the line.
The best was turned in by Colorado defenseman Devon Toews after a shot by Elias Lindholm trickled toward the net. Toews reached behind Kuemper and knocked it away.
鈥淎 disappointing loss,鈥� Flames defenseman Christopher Tanev said. 鈥淭ight game, playoff-like game. Came down to a few little things that they did better than us to win the game.鈥�
MISSING CAPTAIN
Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog is slated for knee surgery Monday. He has a team-most 30 goals this season.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a big part of us,鈥� Rantanen said. 鈥淥bviously, when you lose your captain, other guys have to step up.鈥�
INJURY REPORT
Avalanche defenseman Bowen Byram (personal leave) has been skating with the team. Fellow blue-liner Samuel Girard is expected to be out about a month with a lower-body injury. ... Flames D Oliver Kylington missed a second straight game with a lower-body injury.
UP NEXT
Flames: Host the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday.
Avalanche: Start a two-game trip Tuesday in Los Angeles against the Kings.
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Pat Graham, The Associated Press
