Cale Makar trying to get back on scoring track as Avalanche face elimination in Game 6 against Stars

DENVER (AP) — Cale Makar broke in a new pair of skates Wednesday at an optional practice. Next up, breaking out of a scoring slump. Nothing has come easy for the standout Colorado Avalanche defenseman against the tenacious play of the Dallas Stars. Makar has been held to no goals and two assists in a first-round series the Avalanche trail 3-2. Dallas can close out the series Thursday night in Game 6 at Ball Arena. The Stars were in the same spot a year ago and ended Colorado's season in double overtime. "I'm not worried about him," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said of Makar. "I think he's going to bounce back with a huge game for us tomorrow." Makar sets the bar high when it comes to scoring expectations. He entered the first-round series averaging 1.11 points per playoff game, which was the second-highest mark among blue liners in Stanley Cup history. Only Hall of Fame defenseman Bobby Orr had a higher average (1.24). The 26-year-old Makar is coming off a regular season in which he had 30 goals and 62 assists. He's just the ninth different defenseman in NHL history to score at least 30 goals. In recent days, the honors have poured in for Makar. He's a finalist for the Norris Trophy, an award given to the blue liner voted the best at his position. On Wednesday, Makar, along with teammate Nathan MacKinnon and Tampa Bay's Nikita Kucherov, were announced as finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award. It's an award given to the most outstanding player in the NHL as voted by fellow members of the NHL Players' Association. He appreciates the recognition. But he's focused on Game 6. "Honestly, I've got to be a lot better," Makar said. "There have been glimpses where I've been pretty good. ... There's a lot of things I can do a lot better. It's do-or-die now, so we've got to step it up." Makar's not alone as the defensive-minded Stars have locked up the high-flying Avalanche. New forward additions Martin Necas and Brock Nelson have yet to find the back of the net in the series. Same goes for Jonathan Drouin, while Valeri Nichushkin only has one goal. "Pressure is a privilege, and you earn that pressure," Bednar said. "Pressure, a lot of times, can drive the best out of your team." Dallas Stars at Colorado Avalanche When/Where to Watch: Game 6, Thursday. 9:30 p.m. EDT (TBS) Series: Stars lead 3-2 Dallas forward Mikko Rantanen knows full well how challenging a close-out game in Denver can be. He's seen the electricity in the building after spending parts of 10 seasons with Colorado before joining the Stars (by way of Carolina in a March trade). Rantanen helped Colorado to a Stanley Cup title in 2022, going 7-3 at home during that run. On the flip side, Dallas is 4-1 in Denver over the last two playoff series against Colorado. That includes wrapping up the second-round series in Game 6 at Ball Arena last season on Matt Duchene's double-overtime winner. "We'd love to end it tomorrow," Duchene said. "We'd love to not have to come back (to Dallas) for Game 7." For Colorado, this game is a mixture of desperation and fear. "It's a number of different words to describe it, but it's win-or-go-home," Nelson said. "It's all that wrapped into one, and I think it's just kind of bottling it up and harnessing it to use to your advantage." Vegas Golden Knights at Minnesota Wild When/Where to Watch: Game 6, Thursday. 7:30 p.m. EDT (ESPN) Series: Golden Knights lead 3-2 This is a familiar situation for the Wild, facing another possible first-round departure. They haven't won a playoff series since advancing to the second round in 2015. Minnesota is coming of consecutive overtime losses to the Golden Knights, including 3-2 on Tuesday night. "Our guys are obviously disappointed that we lost the game, but I think there's a lot of belief," Wild coach John Hynes said. "You can see the conviction with the way we played. The last two games could've went either way, but we've got another one coming." Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said Wednesday that Pavel Dorofeyev is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. He led the Knights with 35 goals this season. For the Wild, "all signs point toward" goalie Filip Gustavsson returning to the net after an illness forced him out for the third period and overtime, coach John Hynes said. "Right now he feels better, feels good," Hynes said after the team returned to Minnesota. Marc-Andre Fleury, the retiring fan favorite who's second in NHL history in wins, produced another inspiring performance by coming in cold off the bench and making several sharp saves until letting in Brett Howden's winner on a one-timer with a clear shooting lane that any goalie would've had trouble stopping. "You get a goalie go down like Gus who's been playing great and then you have Marc-Andre Fleury coming in, no one's panicking," Wild left wing Marcus Foligno said. "It's pretty special to have that guy come in when you need him." Los Angeles Kings at Edmonton Oilers When/Where to Watch: Game 6, Thursday. 10 p.m. EDT (ESPN) Series: Oilers lead 3-2 Being behind doesn't seem to rattle the Oilers. They became the third team in league history with three comeback wins after facing a 2-0 series deficit. "We wanted to play pedal-on-the-gas type hockey," said Oilers forward Evander Kane, who had a goal in a 3-1 win on Tuesday in Los Angeles. "We stayed in the fight, we didn't get frustrated even though they scored first." Toronto Maple Leafs at Ottawa Senators When/Where to Watch: Game 6, Thursday. 7 p.m. EDT (TBS) Series: Maple Leafs lead 3-2 Ottawa has won two straight. This marks the third straight postseason where a team has forced a Game 6 after falling behind 3-0 in their series. Edmonton came back on Florida in the 2024 Stanley Cup Final before losing in Game 7, while Carolina rallied in round two last season against the New York Rangers before falling in six games. In 2023, Dallas was down 3-0 to Vegas in the conference finals before winning two straight and then bowing out. "I don't think there's any panic in this room," Leafs forward Auston Matthews said. "It's the ups and downs of playoffs. We've been here before. We're just going to put our best foot forward, go into the next game with confidence."