DENVER _ Shots sailed wide, passes missed the mark and the Wild put themselves off-side a few times _ the usual signs a team was playing a game that counted for the first time in nearly six months.
But the one letdown the Wild couldn't afford as they settled in for another season was neglecting Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon.
After all, the talented center finished second in Hart Trophy voting last season for the title of the NHL's most valuable player, racked up an impressive 97 points and torched the Wild for four goals and nine points in just four head-to-head matchups.
And MacKinnon picked up where he left off, skating untouched to the front of the net and burying the decisive tally in a season-opening 4-1 loss for the Wild Thursday at Pepsi Center _ a result that didn't catch up to the feeling of the game until the waning minutes.
With 9 minutes, 34 seconds left in the second period, MacKinnon cut to the middle while all the attention was on puck-carrier Mikko Rantanen. Once Rantanen heaved the puck from the flank toward the crease, MacKinnon was there all alone to redirect in the feed over goalie Devan Dubnyk's left skate.
The timing was especially unfortunate since the Wild seemed to gain momentum after surviving an Avalanche power play just a few minutes earlier _ with Dubnyk gloving a MacKinnon try and getting a pad on another look from winger Colin Wilson.
Weathering that pressure emerged as a moral victory considering the Wild didn't have much to embrace to that point.
Colorado was mostly in control, regularly getting quality looks on Dubnyk and limiting the Wild's time in the offensive zone.
Even the team's lone goal came off a quick stint in front of Avalanche goalie Semyon Varlamov.
After winger Zach Parise collected a turnover, he funneled the puck deep and then connected on a Mikko Koivu pass at 6:14 of the first period to give the Wild an early lead.
Dating back to last season, including the playoffs, the goal was Parise's ninth in his past nine games _ an encouraging sign for the 34-year-old after his 2017-18 campaign was cut short due to a fractured sternum.
But the Wild struggled to build off the goal, finishing the frame with just five shots, and that opened the door for the Avalanche to tie it _ which the team did at 12:29 when center Carl Soderberg ripped a shot by Dubnyk's glove after a Wild turnover in the neutral zone.
By the end of the first, Colorado had 14 shots and tacked on another 18 in the second; the Wild had mustered just 13 through two periods.
A potential comeback in the third appeared to take a major hit less than two minutes in the third when the Avalanche potted another _ this time when Wilson batted the puck out of midair into the net.
After the sequence was reviewed, though, video showed Wilson directed the puck in with his glove instead of his stick and the goal was whipped off the board.
The Wild received a power play soon after, but the team couldn't convert. It ended up going 0-for-3.
Later in the period, Rantanen added an empty-netter with 1:53 to go before center J.T. Compher had one of his own on the power play with 20 seconds remaining. The Avalanche went 1-for-4 with the man advantage.
Dubnyk totaled 36 saves; Varlamov had 20.
As for defenseman Ryan Suter, he logged 25:41 in his first regular-season game since he suffered a severe ankle injury March 31.
