SAN JOSE, CA – They say sometimes a little luck can go a long way – it’s hard to believe Chris Stewart will argue with that sentiment after his centring pass struck veteran defenseman Rob Blake’s skate and squeezed past San Jose Sharks netminder Evgeni Nabokov to give the Avs a shocking 2-1 victory in Game 1 of their first round playoff series against the number one seed in the West. Blake, who spent five seasons and won a Stanley Cup with the Avs, and the Sharks came out of the blocks fastest early on, hoping to shake off the memories of last season’s disappointing defeat in round 1 against Anaheim and rattle the youthful Avalanche. They were presented with an early opportunity when Stewart, who led the Avs with 28 goals this season, was called for hooking after less than a minute into the game, but Colorado netminder Craig Anderson turned away all six shots he faced with his team a man down, and made 25 saves on the night to win his first ever NHL playoff game. Anderson and Stewart were among ten Avalanche players making their first ever post-season appearances on the night. Both Paul Stastny and Sharks superstar winger Dany Heatley hit the cross bar, and Devin Setoguchi fired just wide on an almost open net for the home side; but neither team could break the deadlock in the opening period. It wasn’t until John-Michael Liles power play blast from the blueline during a 2nd period where neither gained an edge. The Avs had been held back by the Sharks up to that point, but dominated much of the play after the goal by out shooting the home side 12-2 in the final 11 minutes of the period! San Jose bounced back in the final frame when Ryan Clowe’s speculative effort through traffic found its way past Anderson, after Joe Pavelski had screened the Avs puck stopper. Both sides pushed for a winning goal, but it was Stewarts’ good fortune with just 50 seconds remaining that broke the hearts of the Sharks faithful inside the HP Pavillion and gave the young Avs side a 1-0 lead in the series going into Friday’s second game in San Jose. Heading into this weekend’s games, it appears that the Avs will still be without Peter Mueller, who is recovering from a head injury. Mueller was acquired from Phoenix at the trade deadline and made a flying start to his Avs career, grabbing 9 goals and 11 assists in just 15 games for the team. He was injured after being hit into the end boards by Rob Blake during the two team’s last encounter in early April. However, rookie sensation Matt Duchene did return to the line-up on Wednesday night, after a brief spell out with a torso injury. San Jose welcomed defenseman Niklas Wallin back from injury as well. Contact the author: rob.mcgregor@prohockeynews.com
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