Avalanche lament missed opportunities after loss to Knights - ESPN

DENVER — All it took was two minutes for the Colorado Avalanche to go from possibly tying the Western Conference final to now being forced to do something they've only done once since moving to Denver.

Colorado churned its way to a 1-0 lead only to have Jack Eichel and Ivan Barbashev score within two minutes of one another in the third period to help the Vegas Golden Knights snag a 3-1 win Friday in Game 2 of the Western Conference final.

Exactly how crippling was it for the Avs to fall into an 0-2 series hole? For one, it's the first time they've lost after entering the third period with a lead. They were 41-0-0 in the regular season and were previously 4-0 this postseason.

Perhaps the most daunting aspect facing the Avs is that they're now charged with trying to win a series after falling into an 0-2 hole for the first time since 1999 when they rallied to beat the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference semifinal round.

That's the only time the Avalanche have come back from an 0-2 deficit to win a playoff series since the franchise relocated from Quebec City. The Quebec Nordiques pulled it off twice in the 1982 division finals against the Boston Bruins and again in the 1987 division semifinal against the Hartford Whalers, according to ESPN Stats and Information.

«That's why it's a seven-game series,» Avalanche goaltender Scott Wedgewood said. «You have to find a way to win a game and go from there. What we can do is focus on the next one. You can't think too far ahead of it. Honestly, you have to prepare for the next one. There's no bigger story than that.»

Similar to Game 1, Wedgewood was forced to make several key saves early with the Golden Knights getting seven shots in the first six minutes while the Avs only