BOSTON — Teenager Nathan MacKinnon and 30-somethings Daniel Briere and Alex Tanguay had the shift of the game Monday, Avalanche coach Patrick Roy said. Briere scored the game-winning goal with 0.5 seconds remaining in regulation, but it was a collective effort from him and his linemates, plus defensemen Erik Johnson and Jan Hejda.
“You look at that shift, how hard they worked down low. It was fantastic,” Roy said after Briere’s dramatic goal. “Danny and Nate and Alex, they kept that puck in, and you never know what could happen, with less than 10, 15 seconds when they started buzzing in their end — 0.5 seconds, sometimes that’s all you need.”
Roy has saw plenty of extraordinary moments in his Hall-of-Fame playing career, but Briere’s goal is one of his most memorable as a coach.
“There’s a lot of strange things that happen in hockey, but 0.5 — there’s not much room for it,” Roy said.
Footnotes Roy politely declined to comment on the Avs’ disallowed goal earlier in the third period. … Defenseman Ryan Wilson was struck in the face by a puck and likely suffered a concussion, Roy said. He is unlikely to play Tuesday at Toronto. … The Bruins’ sellout crowd on their annual Columbus Day matinee was their 216th consecutive, dating to 2009. … The Avs had dinner Sunday night at Tresca, a Ray Bourque-owned Italian restaurant in Boston’s historic North End. Bourque hosted the Avs in a private upstairs room. … Cody McLeod was the first Avs player to fight this season, dropping the gloves with Adam McQuaid midway through the second period Monday. … The Avs played the first of three afternoon games this season. They were 4-1-1 last season. … Colorado departed for Toronto after the game and will play Tuesday night against the Maple Leafs.
COLORADO AT TORONTO
5:30 p.m. Tuesday, ALT; 950 AM
Spotlight on Tyler Bozak: The former University of Denver standout leads the Maple Leafs with three goals and four points. The top-line center also has a team-high two power-play goals. Bozak, 28, is in the second year of his $28 million contract, having an excellent NHL career after being overlooked in the league’s entry draft. Bozak centers explosive wingers Phil Kessel and James van Riemsdyk, who both played for the U.S. in the 2014 Winter Olympics.
