Nathan MacKinnon scores in OT, Avalanche beat Panthers 5-4

Nathan MacKinnon scored 3:30 into overtime to give the Colorado Avalanche their sixth victory in seven games this season, 5-4 over the Florida Panthers on Friday night. Playing after sustaining a leg injury Wednesday night in an overtime loss to Pittsburgh, MacKinnon beat Sergei Bobrovsky to the glove side.

Andre Burakovsky scored twice, Joonas Donskoi had a goal and two assists, Matt Nieto also scored and Philipp Grubauer stopped 40 shots for Colorado. Jonathan Huberdeau scored twice for Florida, Brett Connolly and Frank Vatrano added goals and Sergei Bobrovsky made 36 saves. Connolly gave the Panthers a 4-3 lead with 5:55 left in the second, and Burakovsky tied it 16 seconds later when he banged in a rebound.

Colorado scored twice in a 32-second span midway through the second period to tie it a 3. Pierre-Edouard Bellemare passed from behind the net to Nieto and he beat Bobrovsky to make it 3-2. Burakovsky’s first goal, a shot from the top of the right circle, tied it with 8:05 left in the period.