Mackenzie Blackwood of Thunder Bay, Ontario recorded his 13th National Hockey League shutout on Sunday. He accomplished the feat in a 2-0 Colorado Avalanche win over the Philadelphia Flyers at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado.
Blackwood made 24 saves for the shutout. He made 10 saves in the first period, seven saves in the second period, and seven saves in the third period. Scott Laughton of Oakville, Ontario and Noah Cates led the Flyers with four shots on goal each.
Two Canadians scored for the Avalanche. Defenseman Samuel Girard of Roberval, Quebec scored the game-winning goal at 8:33 of the second period. Then, Nathan MacKinnon of Hallifax, Nova Scotia scored an insurance goal on the power-play with an all-Canadian goal at 17:28 of the second period. Defenseman Cale Makar of Calgary, Alberta and Jonathan Drouin of Ste-Agathe, Quebec had the assists. Drouin led the Avalanche in points as he had two assists for two points.
This was Blackwood’s third shutout of the season. He also blanked the New Jersey Devils 1-0 while with the San Jose Sharks on November 10 and the St. Louis Blues 5-0 while with the Avalanche on January 31.
Of Blackwood’s 13 NHL career shutouts, eight have been with the Devils, three with the Sharks and two with the Avalanche. This season he has a record of 18 wins, 14 regulation losses and five losses in extra time, with a goals against average of 2.51 and a save percentage of .916.
The Avalanche are in fourth place in the Central Division with a record of 31 wins, 21 regulation losses and two losses in extra time for 64 points. They lead the Vancouver Canucks by seven points for a playoff spot.
