The San Jose Sharks rallied once again late in a third period, but this time, the hole was too deep to dig out of.
In a series of momentum swings, the Avalanche took control and locked down defensively to hold on to a 4-3 victory at SAP Center in Game 2 of the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
For the second consecutive game, the Sharks were without their captain Joe Pavelski, so the core group had to step up in his absence.
Normally, Pavelski would be waiting in front of the crease to tip-in a Brent Burns slap shot from the point, but Evander Kane took the leap of faith into the dangerous area and got rewarded early on.