Avalanche Fall In Tightly Contested Contest Will Look To Even Series Monday

Colorado's Playoff Hopes Hang In The Balance

Game 4 Ends In Heartbreak For The Avs As The St. Louis Blues Take A 3-1 Series Lead

The Colorado Avalanche suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues in Game 4 of their second-round playoff series on Saturday night at Ball Arena. The Avalanche, who were looking to tie the series at 2-2, now find themselves down 3-1 and facing elimination in Game 5 on Monday night in St. Louis.

Mikko Rantanen scored both goals for the Avalanche, while Nathan MacKinnon and Devon Toews each had an assist. Ville Husso made 28 saves for the Blues, while Darcy Kuemper stopped 25 shots for the Avalanche.

The Avalanche controlled the majority of the play in the first period, but they were unable to find the back of the net. Rantanen finally broke the deadlock at 10:42 of the second period when he tipped in a shot from MacKinnon.

The Blues tied the game just over four minutes later when David Perron scored on a power play. The Avalanche regained the lead at 17:26 of the third period when Rantanen scored his second goal of the game, but the Blues tied the game again just over two minutes later when Brayden Schenn scored on a breakaway.

The game went to overtime, but neither team was able to score. The Blues won the game in the shootout when Robert Thomas scored the only goal.

The Avalanche will now need to win Game 5 in St. Louis on Monday night to avoid elimination. The Blues will be looking to close out the series and advance to the Western Conference Finals.