Jose Theodore and the Colorado Avalanche sat back and waited. Then Wojtek Wolski and Paul Stastny pushed the Minnesota Wild to the edge of elimination. Wojtek and Stastny scored 79 seconds apart early in the third period to give Theodore and the patient Avs a 3-2 victory and a 3-2 series lead, after weathering a relentless effort by the Wild.
Minnesota outshot Colorado 32-14 over the first two periods. But following an interference penalty by Sean Hill, with 5 seconds left on the power play, Wolski sent the puck through goalie Niklas Backstrom's pads for a 2-1 lead with 14:54 remaining. Then came the knockout blow by Stastny, the regular-season goals leader for the Avalanche. (More hockey stories.)