Gabe Landeskog punctuates dominant Avalanche effort with goal, assist in Game 4 win

Corey Masisak, The Denver Post on Apr 27, 2025

Published in Hockey

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DENVER — Someone should probably start on the movie script at this point.

Colorado Avalanche captain Gabe Landeskog scored his first goal in nearly three years and added an assist, punctuating a dominant performance in a 4-0 win Saturday night against the Dallas Stars at Ball Arena in Game 4 of this 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs opening-round series.

Logan O’Connor and Nathan MacKinnon got the party started, but it was Landeskog’s goal at 13:10 of the second that led to a euphoric release of emotion inside Ball Arena after the home patrons saw their captain score his first goal since Game 3 of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final.

The win evens the best-of-seven series at 2-2, with Game 5 on Monday night in Dallas. It also guarantees a Game 6 back here on Thursday night.

Colorado’s fourth line grinded out a long shift in the Dallas end ahead of the third goal. The Stars probably should have been called for icing, but the Avs retrieved the puck and went right back to work. Josh Manson got the puck up to Brock Nelson along the left side of the ice.

Nelson sent it to Landeskog in the high slot. The Avs captain controlled the pass for a beat, then fired a rocket past Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger. Landeskog had two goals in that Game 3 against the Tampa Bay Lightning and an assist in the Cup-clinching Game 6.

That was Nelson’s first point of the series. Avs coach Jared Bednar was happy with how the Avs’ big trade deadline addition played in Game 3, and he was involved in several scoring chances again in this contest.

It was the only goal of Colorado’s best period of the series, but that was solely because of Oettinger’s heroics. The Avs had a 22-5 advantage in shots on goal, including 14 in a row at one point. They had the next 11 shots on goal after the Landeskog goal as they continued to pour on the offensive pressure.

That same formula — a great shift by the fourth line proceeding a goal from the new-look second unit — made it a 4-0 game. After the fourth line pinned Dallas in its own end, Nelson went to work on Lian Bischel in the corner to turn the puck over. That eventually led to a Samuel Girard goal, with a vintage Landeskog screen in front at 10:46 of the third.

Nelson and Landeskog collected assists to give each two-point nights. The fourth goal came on backup goalie Casey DeSmith, who replaced Oettinger at the start of the third period.

The Avalanche penalty kill has been a trouble spot this series, but it was the PK that put Colorado in front. O’Connor bullied Thomas Harley off the puck at the right point, then raced to the other end and buried a shot into the top-left corner at 12:39 of the first.

Dallas scored three times on the man advantage in the first three games, including a pair of game-tying third-period tallies to send Games 2 and 3 to overtime.

Colorado doubled its advantage with a much-needed power play goal late in the period. MacKinnon scored on a one-timer from Devon Toews with 23.4 left in the period. The Avs were 2 for 13 on the man advantage coming into Game 4, including an 0-for-6 Game 3. Jonathan Drouin, who was taken off the top unit, made a great play to get the puck to Toews.

This was the first period everyone expected from the Avs in Game 3, when Landeskog made his remarkable return after 1,032 days away. Colorado dominated the puck. While the Avs didn’t score at even strength, they had a 23-9 advantage in shot attempts.

Footnotes: Landeskog moved up to the second line and top power-play unit for this game, just his second NHL contest since the 2022 Stanley Cup Final. … Ross Colton missed his third straight contest because of an injury sustained in Game 1. Avs coach Bednar did not have an updated timeline for him ahead of Game 4.