Cale Makar was denied a hat trick Sunday afternoon. He won the game for the Colorado Avalanche anyway. Makar came out of the penalty box, picked off a pass and set up Artturi Lehkonen with 14.7 seconds in the third period for the winning goal in a wild 5-4 victory for the Avs against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.

Martin Necas had two assists, nearly scored twice himself and excelled on the top line. Jack Drury scored a goal and centered a new-look depth line while all 12 Avs forwards played more than 10 minutes, a departure from the usual top-heavy distribution.

However, their defensive play appeared somewhat unstable, as both of the Jets' regulation goals stemmed from lapses in coverage in front of the net. Despite the loss, Cale Makar expressed strong admiration for Nathan MacKinnon, who scored a goal during the game.