Avalanche 2 - 3 Ducks
Final - OT
  for this game

Ducks rally past Avs in OT

Apr 14, 2014 - 4:18 AM Anaheim, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Nick Bonino scored 1:33 into overtime to lift the Anaheim Ducks to a 3-2 win over the visiting Colorado Avalanche in the regular-season finale for both clubs.

The Ducks, who already clinched the top seed in the Western Conference, erased a 2-0 deficit with third-period goals from Patrick Maroon and Saku Koivu 3:13 apart.

Then, in the extra session, Devante Smith-Pelly gathered a rebound and fed Bonino, who flipped a shot over a sprawled Jean-Sebastien Giguere.

Rookie John Gibson made 29 saves for Anaheim (54-20-8), which will begin its first-round series against Dallas on Wednesday.

Despite the loss, the Avalanche, a year removed from finishing in the West basement, clinched the Central Division title when St. Louis lost 3-0 to Detroit earlier Sunday. It's the first division crown for Colorado since 2003.

"Nobody expected to see us where we are and finish ahead of Chicago and St. Louis. It is something very special," said Colorado head coach Patrick Roy.

Giguere made 33 saves for the Avalanche (52-22-8), who will face Minnesota in an opening-round matchup that gets underway on Thursday.

Maroon went to the net and tipped in Mathieu Perreault's pass from the right half boards at the 1:41 mark of the third.

A defensive breakdown by the Avalanche left Koivu uncovered in the low slot. The veteran forward took a pass from Sami Vatanen, pulled the puck around Giguere and tucked it in with a backhand at 4:54.

"Sometimes, these games are hard when you're not playing for much," Koivu said. "But when you're down by two goals against a team that hasn't lost (in regulation) after two periods shows we're deep talent-wise and can roll four lines. It was a great boost for our team."

Colorado had been 35-0-2 when leading after two periods.

The Avalanche got goals from Brad Malone and recent call-up Stefan Elliott.

Malone whacked away at a loose puck in the crease and was able to knock it in at the 12:11 mark of the first period. The referee signaled no goal at first because he ruled that Malone pushed Gibson's pad, but a video review reversed the call. It was determined that Malone's shot entered before he made contact with the goalie.

Elliott, making his season debut for the Avalanche, swatted at a loose puck in the slot and beat Gibson with 1:09 remaining in the second period.

Game Notes

The Ducks set a single-season club record with their 29th home win ... Anaheim rested forwards Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry ... Colorado finished with identical 26-11-4 marks at home and on the road this season ... Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon won the NHL rookie scoring race with 63 points ... Colorado defenseman Nate Guenin played in his 100th career NHL game.






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