NEW YORK (AP) — Logan O’Connor scored twice in a 22-second span in a five-goal second period, and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Rangers 7-3 on Wednesday night, ending New York’s seven-game winning streak.
Mikko Rantanen also scored twice for Colarado. Nathan MacKinnon, Nazem Kadri and Alex Newhook added goals, and Darcy Kuemper made 26 saves. Kadri, Devon Toews and Samuel Girard each had two assists as the Avalanche improved to 8-2-1 in their last 11 games.
Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba had a goal and an assist and delivered a crushing check in the second straight game. One night after appearing to drive his right shoulder into the chin of Chicago’s Jujhar Khaira, sending the Blackhawks’ forward to the hospital and into concussion protocol, Trouba hit Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon with a shoulder check midway through the second period. The Avalanche’s Gabriel Landeskog immediately dropped his gloves and squared off against Trouba.
Nils Lundkvist and Filip Chytil also scored for the Rangers, who lost at home for the first time since Oct. 25 against Calgary. Rangers rookie Adam Huska made his NHL debut and finished with 32 saves.
With the Avalanche leading 4-2 after scoring three times in a six-minute span against Huska, O’Connor scored his fourth of the season on a dazzling move at 17:14 and followed with his fifth to make it 6-2 at 17:36.
New York had won eight straight games at Madison Square Garden.
Jonas Johansson made one third-period save for the Avalanche when Kuemper made a brief departure because of an equipment issue.
The Avalanche are the only team to score seven goals five times this season and the only team to score six or more goals on seven different occasions this season.
The Rangers took a 2-1 lead into the first intermission on goals by defensemen Trouba at 6:56 and Lundkvist at 18:15. Lundkvist’s goal was the first of his NHL career. A first-round pick by the Rangers in 2018, the 21-year-old was playing his 20th game.
Rantanen opened the scoring for the Avalanche at 4:11 of the first.
Huska was sharp the rest of the opening stanza, making 16 saves. But the Avalanche scored five times in less than 13 minutes of the second period.
MacKinnon scored his second of the season at 4:48, poking the puck past Huska.
Kadri followed with his 11th at 6:11, before Newhook made it 4-2 at 10:42, whipping the puck past Huska on a one-timer for his sixth goal.
O’Connor, who hadn’t scored in 10 games since Nov. 13, then struck twice.
Chytil completed the scoring for the Rangers at 11:52 of the third period, before Rantanen scored his second of the game and 12th of the season at 13:25
The Rangers were coming off a 6-2 in Chicago on Tuesday night, which was their 11th win in 12 games.