DALLAS _ The Colorado Avalanche finished better Saturday night.
While both coaches were worried about how their teams would start in a return from respective "bye weeks," the Avalanche came up big in the third period and took a 4-1 win.
Nathan MacKinnon scored at 6:33 of the third period to break a 1-1 tie, as the Avalanche won their sixth game in a row and moved to 23-16-3 (49 points). The Stars fall to 24-17-3 (51 points) as the Western Conference wildcard situation tightens up.
Dallas had plenty of chances as it started the third period with two power plays, but couldn't beat Jonathan Bernier, who finished with 27 saves. Among the great chances for Dallas were point blank shots from Brett Ritchie and Antoine Roussel, as well as several good chances from Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn and Alexander Radulov. In the end, though, Bernier was too good.
Ben Bishop had his fair share of nice stops, including robbing Tyson Jost in the final minute of the second period, but two slippery shots escaped his grasp. Alex Kerfoot came barreling down the left wing in the first period and looked almost out of control as he swept a shot past Bishop for his 11th goal of the season.
Colorado looked to make it 2-0 in the second period when Carl Soderberg shot the puck into an open goal while Bishop was down on the ice behind the net. The Stars challenged and officials in Toronto ruled Blake Comeau knocked down Bishop and was guilty of goaltender interference. Dallas than came back and tied the game when Jamie Benn scored on a rebound.
However, MacKinnon scored his 19th goal, and that was the game-winner.
Dallas starts a four-game road trip in Boston on Monday.
