The Colorado Avalanche made it official Tuesday night in Chicago. With a 5-1 win over the Blackhawks, the Avs officially eliminated their hosts from the playoff race.
Chicago had not missed the post season since 2007-08.
“Obviously, one of those runs you want to keep going,” Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane said. “We had a disappointing second half of the season, to say the least. It 
seemed like a lot of the games throughout the year kind of went the way they did tonight, where we score first and give up one, lose the momentum and just can’t regain it. Disappointing season.”
Semyon Varlamov made 44 saves to get the win for the Avs as they improved to 40-25-8 in a remarkable turn around form the last season.
The Avs sit in the first wild card spot in the Western Conference ahead of the Anaheim Ducks and just back of the Minnesota Wild.
“It was a big two points,” Avs head coach Jared Bednar said. “I love the fact that we found a way to get it done. We had a big second period. … [Varlamov] had a big night. I don’t like to see [him being relied upon so much], but he’s part of our team and we’ll take it. We’ll take that performance from him every night if we can.”
Brent Seabrook gave the Hawks a 1-0 lead before the house fell in on Chicago.
Alexander Kerfoot struck twice for the Avs.
Mikko Rantanen and Tyson Barrie also scored for Colorado.
“Every time we play in here, they shoot from everywhere,” Varlamov said. “They’re buzzing, they’re playing well. … That was a really tough game. The start was kind of slow, but we started picking up the game in the second period.”
Erik Johnson added an empty-netter late to seal it for Colorado.
“We have nine more games. It’s tight. Every game, every point matters for us. It’s tough buildings that we’ve won in recently, so we’re happy with that,” the Avs’ Nathan MacKinnon said after the game.
[WATCH:Â All Avalanche vs. Blackhawks highlights]
Anton Forsberg made 35 saves in taking the loss.
The Hawks dropped to 30-35-9.
“It sucks, and it’s kind of embarrassing. It’s hard. You play to make the playoffs. Not making it is definitely a failure. There’s still games left to be played. It’s the NHL. You’ve got to earn your spots and your wins,” Chicago’s Connor Murphy said.
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