Nelson scores hat trick, Avalanche defeat Maple Leafs

TORONTO -- Brock Nelson scored a hat trick for the Colorado Avalanche in a 4-1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday.

Nelson, who will represent Team USA at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 next month, got his first two goals of the game in a span of 1:12 in the first period before completing the hat trick with an empty-net goal in the third period. He has 13 goals in his past 13 games.

“If I knew how to bottle it up [I would], but I think it’s just trying to just play, not really think about it too much,” Nelson said of his strong stretch. “Go out there and read and react on the play, find your space, find your openings and never pass up your shot.”

Mackenzie Blackwood made 32 saves, and Jack Drury scored for the Avalanche (35-6-9), who are 2-2-2 in their past six games.

Blackwood lost his shutout bid with 1:02 remaining in the third. He allowed 11 goals over his previous two starts, including six in a 7-3 defeat against the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday.

“Great start to our road trip,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. “I liked our defending details tonight. The commitment to play the right way without the puck and get above checks, check to get the puck back, it was a really good effort on that side of it, and then our decision-making with the puck too. I didn’t feel like we were forcing plays.”

Max Domi scored, and Joseph Woll made 33 saves for the Maple Leafs (24-19-9), who are 1-4-2 since a 4-3 overtime win at Colorado on Jan. 12 and have lost four in a row, all at home (0-3-1).

“It’s about this next game now (against the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday), pulling each other up, helping each other out when things aren’t going well,” Toronto captain Auston Matthews said. “You can’t get down and start to have a bad attitude or be on your own program. Everybody has to stick together even more throughout this.”

Nelson gave the Avalanche a 1-0 lead at 6:19 of the first. After a turnover in the neutral zone, Nelson collected the puck, skated into the offensive zone and shot past Woll’s glove from the right face-off circle. It was his 25th goal of the season.

He scored again at 7:31 when he one-timed a pass from Artturi Lehkonen, who was behind the net, over Woll’s right shoulder from just above the goal line to make it 2-0.

Jack Drury extended Colorado’s lead to 3-0 at 18:53 of the second period. He took a pass from Parker Kelly just inside the blue line and shot low to the glove side from the top of the left circle.

Blackwood made 13 saves in the second, then preserved the three-goal lead at 12:18 of the third when he stretched to his right and made a sprawling pad save on Matias Maccelli’s rebound chance at the top of the goal crease.

“He was great tonight,” Bednar said. “He didn’t have a lot of work, but [he] came up with some big saves when we needed them. We need that type of (goaltending). If we are a little short-handed or if our team is a little off and we are giving up more chances than we’d like, we need our goalies to step up at those moments, and tonight he did that.”

Nelson completed the hat trick with an empty-net goal at 17:41 to make it 4-0. It was his fifth career hat trick and first since March 19, 2022, when he played for the New York Islanders.

Domi put in a loose puck at the top of the goal crease during a power play at 18:58 for the 4-1 final.

“We have to fix the execution part for me and then the battle level,” Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube said. “When you get down in a game, you have to come together as a team and fight through that. It’s going to happen, we all know that.

“I think losing at home here has worn on our team a little bit, but that’s pro sports and we have to all pull it together here and get ready for Tuesday. We need a win. That’s the bottom line.”

NOTES: Colorado became the fourth team in NHL history with six or fewer regulation losses through 50 games in a season, joining the 1979-80 Philadelphia Flyers (35-3-12), the 1943-44 Montreal Canadiens (38-5-7) and the 1975-76 Canadiens (36-6-8). … Nelson’s first two goals were the second-fastest scored by an Avalanche player this season behind Cale Makar (1:06 against the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 8). It’s the eighth time Nelson has scored 25 goals in a season, tied with Alex DeBrincat and Kyle Connor for third-most by a U.S.-born player; only Patrick Kane (11) and Matthews (10) have more.