 snapped a tie with Anaheim for the top spot in the Western Conference wild-card race and moved within two points of Minnesota for third place in the Central Division. Chicago (30-35-9) lost for the sixth time in seven games. Defenseman Brent Seabrook scored his fifth goal of the season for the Blackhawks, and Anton Forsberg made 35 stops in his first start since he was pulled in the first period of Thursday night's 6-2 loss at Winnipeg. The last-place Blackhawks were eliminated from postseason contention with the loss. They had made the playoffs in nine straight seasons, winning three Stanley Cups. Seabrook's power-play goal put Chicago in front with 4:15 left in the first period, but Colorado responded with three in the second. With Andreas Martinsen in the box for slashing, a wide-open Kerfoot jumped on a rebound and beat Forsberg from the slot at 2:07. Kerfoot snapped a 14-game drought with his 16th of the season. The Avalanche then grabbed a 2-1 lead on their next shot. MacKinnon drew Forsberg over to one side of the net before playing it across to Rantanen for the easy one-timer at 5:01. Rantanen extended his point streak to seven games. The 21-year-old forward is tied with MacKinnon for most points in the NHL in March with 20 apiece. Rantanen and MacKinnon each picked up an assist when Barrie scored from the high slot on another power play, making it 3-1 at 12:40. Barrie extended his career-best point streak to 11 games, the longest run for an Avalanche defenseman since the franchise moved to Colorado. Chicago had three more power-play chances in the third, but came up empty each time. Johnson scored from the other end of the ice at 18:04, and Kerfoot made it 5-1 when he beat Forsberg with 57 seconds remaining. NOTES: MacKinnon has 13 goals and 13 assists during his point streak. ... Blackhawks C Matthew Highmore was scratched after he went hard into the boards during the second period of Sunday night's loss to St. Louis. Martinsen was recalled on an emergency basis from the minors and put a big hit on Avalanche D Nikita Zadorov in the first period. UP NEXTAvalanche: Host the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night. Blackhawks: Host the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night.---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap---More NHL hockey: https://apnews.com/tag/NHLhockey)
Time: 8:30 PM EDT Venue: United Center, Chicago, Ill., 60612 / CHICAGO -- The Colorado Avalanche will look to maintain a foothold in the top eight spots of the Western Conference playoff race when they visit the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday night at the United Center. Colorado (39-25-8) has won four of its past five games and is in position to claim a wild-card playoff berth with 10 games left in the regular season. The Avalanche are seeking their first postseason appearance since the 2013-14 season." We're not worried about anybody coming out flat or not bringing their best, which is nice," Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon said to the team's official website. "Everyone is very confident in each other. That's what makes for a very good team. Everyone really trusts each other on this team. We have a full group of guys committed to the same thing." For the past decade, such quotes have been common from Blackhawks players. But this season has been anything but common for Chicago (30-34-9), which will miss the playoffs for the first time since the 2007-08 season. The previous decade has included nine straight playoff appearances and three Stanley Cup championships. Despite the downturn, the Blackhawks insist they are determined to finish strong." A lot of guys this season have been humbled in a lot of ways with the way the season's going," Blackhawks right winger Patrick Kane said to the Chicago Sun-Times. "And for these young guys, they haven't really been around a winning culture yet. So it's important to try to keep that going, to try to keep winning games and get them to feel that feeling -- what it's like to win games in here and have that winning culture." I don't think that's anything we want to create in here, where losing is acceptable and it's OK if we lose a game because of the position we're in." Kane leads the Blackhawks with 69 points (25 goals, 44 assists) in 73 games. He needs one more point to reach 70 for the seventh time in his career and the third season in a row. Colorado is led by MacKinnon, who has 89 points (38 goals, 51 assists) in 64 games. The 22-year-old has set career highs in goals, assists and points and has garnered attention as a candidate for the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player." For me, if we get in the playoffs, he's the MVP," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. "I can't imagine there's another player that means more for their team and is doing more for their team than what Nate's doing for us. That's just the way I see it. I mean, he is the driving force to our offense." Avalanche goaltender Semyon Varlamov likely will make his 43rd start. He is 21-14-6 with a 2.73 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage. In 20 career games against Chicago, he is 11-6-2 with a 2.36 GAA and a .930 save percentage. The Blackhawks will counter with Jean-Francois Berube or Anton Forsberg in net. Berube is 2-4-1 with a 3.70 GAA and an .897 save percentage in 10 games. Forsberg is 9-15-3 with a 3.04 GAA and a .905 save percentage in 31 games.
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