Brock Boeser produced his seventh career regular-season hat trick and added an assist as the Vancouver Canucks recovered from blowing a four-goal lead to beat the Colorado Avalanche 8-6 in Denver on Wednesday night.
Teddy Blueger scored twice for the Canucks (22-44-8, 52 points), who set a season high for goals while ending a six-game skid. Vancouver’s Marcus Pettersson had a goal and two assists, Max Sasson contributed a goal and an assist, Jake DeBrusk also scored, and Drew O’Connor and Marco Rossi had two assists apiece.
Kevin Lankinen turned away 24 shots for Vancouver, which owns the lowest point total in the NHL. Colorado has the highest point total in the league.
The Avalanche (49-15-10, 108 points) rallied from a 6-2 deficit to tie it on Sam Malinski’s second goal of the night at 13:58 of the third period. Pettersson answered 23 seconds later, and Boeser scored an empty-net goal at 18:31.
Colorado’s Cale Makar did not play due to an upper-body injury suffered in the Avalanche’s Monday win over the Calgary Flames.
Nathan MacKinnon scored his league-leading 50th goal of the season, Malinski also had an assist, Brent Burns recorded a goal and an assist and Gabriel Landeskog and Parker Kelly also scored for the Avalanche.
Colorado’s Devon Toews and Valeri Nichunskin contributed two assists each and Scott Wedgewood saved five of the six shots he faced in relief of Mackenzie Blackwood, who permitted six goals on 19 shots.
The Avalanche trailed 6-2 late in the second but made a furious comeback. Malinski started the rally with a goal at 15:43 of the second, and Kelly’s tally 14 seconds into the third made it 6-4.
Burns scored at 13:21 to get the hosts within 6-5, and Malinski leveled the score 37 seconds later. Moments later, Pettersson scored the game-winner.
Vancouver jumped ahead on Sasson’s goal 29 seconds into the game, MacKinnon tied it at 1:22. Blueger and DeBrusk scored before Landeskog’s goal at 16:05 cut Vancouver’s lead to 3-2 after the first.
Blueger scored his second of the game at 5:02 of the second and Boeser had two goals 4:39 apart to make it 6-2, chasing Blackwood.
