MacKinnon's 3-point performance propels Avalanche past Capitals
Necas contributes 2 assists for Colorado, while Frank scores and assists for Washington, who have lost three consecutive games.
Capitals vs. Avalanche | Recap
By Ryan Boulding
NHL.com Independent Correspondent
January 20, 2026
DENVER -- Nathan MacKinnon's exceptional performance, including two goals and an assist, propelled him to 1,100 NHL points, and the Colorado Avalanche secured a 5-2 victory over the Washington Capitals at Ball Arena on Monday.
MacKinnon expressed his focus on consistent performance, stating, 'I just want to feel good every game. I want to play well, feel good, and help the team. I'm not particularly focused on individual milestones.'
Victor Olofsson, Parker Kelly, and Artturi Lehkonen also found the back of the net for the Avalanche, who had lost their previous two games. Martin Necas contributed two assists. Scott Wedgewood made 22 saves.
Colorado coach Jared Bednar praised the team's effort and commitment, saying, 'I liked our game, effort, and mentality. We took a few penalties, but overall, it was a good effort and a strong bounce-back performance.'
Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin was sidelined due to an upper-body injury sustained in a minor car accident on the way to the rink.
Ethan Frank, Jakob Chychrun, and Charlie Lindgren made 39 saves for the Capitals, who have lost three straight games and are 2-5-0 in their last seven. Washington coach Spencer Carbery acknowledged the team's performance, stating, 'I thought we were right there. We held our own, but we gave them too many chances.'
Kelly opened the scoring for Colorado at 5:54 in the first period, redirecting Cale Makar's point shot past Lindgren's left pad.
Chychrun tied the game at 1-1 with a power-play goal at 7:27, scoring with a wrist shot from the blue line that navigated through traffic and beat Wedgewood's glove.
MacKinnon regained the lead for Colorado at 2-1 with a power-play goal at 7:03 in the second period, skillfully skating into the Washington zone and scoring a wrist shot past Lindgren's glove.
Olofsson extended the Avalanche's lead to 3-1 at 15:58, snapping the rebound of Josh Manson's point shot over Lindgren's shoulder. Brock Nelson set up the play with a face-off win.
Frank reduced the deficit to 3-2 at 16:15, scoring 17 seconds after Olofsson's goal. He received a pass from Alex Ovechkin at the top of the crease and scored with a combination of forehand and backhand shots past Wedgewood's right pad.
Makar appeared to make it 4-2 at 11:05 in the third period, but the Capitals challenged the play for goaltender interference, and the call was reversed after a video review.
However, Lehkonen restored the two-goal lead for Colorado at 12:32, finishing a pass from MacKinnon short side past Lindgren's glove. MacKinnon stole the puck from Justin Sourdif and set up the play.
MacKinnon then sealed the victory with a goal at 16:30, finishing a pass from Necas inside the left post from the slot.
NOTES: Nathan MacKinnon became the 10th active player to reach 1,100 points and the second player in Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques history to achieve this milestone. He also surpassed Peter Stastny for the second most multipoint games in Avalanche/Nordiques history. The only player with more is Joe Sakic. Alex Ovechkin moved within four points of Wayne Gretzky for the fifth-most points by a player with a single franchise. Alex Barre-Boulet made his Avalanche debut, recording an assist in 3:46 of ice time after being recalled from the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League on Monday.
