MacKinnon scores 400th goal, Nichushkin nets hat trick and Avalanche rout Blues 6-1 – Winnipeg Free Press

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MacKinnon scores 400th goal, Nichushkin nets hat trick and Avalanche rout Blues 6-1 – Winnipeg Free Press

DENVER (AP) — Nathan MacKinnon scored twice, including his 400th career goal, and Valeri Nichushkin scored his second NHL hat trick as the Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues 6-1 on Wednesday night for their ninth straight win.

MacKinnon became the third player in franchise history to score 400 goals and the first to score them all with the Avalanche. Joe Sakic scored 625 goals, the first 233 of which came with the Quebec Nordiques before the team moved to Colorado. Michel Goulet ranks second in club history with 456 goals, all for Quebec.

MacKinnon, who has two assists, leads the NHL with 34 goals. His 70 points tied Edmonton star Connor McDavid for the most in the league.



Colorado Avalanche center Brock Nelson is congratulated as he walks past the team's penalty area after scoring a goal against the St. Louis Blues during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Nichushkin scored twice during a four-goal streak in the first 4:39 of the game and finished with three goals. Brock Nelson later scored on the power play for Colorado, and Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 12 shots.

Colorado has won 15 straight at home (17-0-2) and has just two losses to the regular season (30-2-7). The Avalanche's 69 points tied the 1929-30 Boston Bruins for the most points in 39 games.

Jordan Binnington allowed four goals on his first eight shots and finished with 37 saves. Dalibor Dvorski scored for St. Louis, which has lost two straight games. The Blues' 13 shots on goal were a season high.

Nichushkin made it 1-0 at the minute, and MacKinnon scored his first goal of the game at 3:13. Nichushkin got his second of the night 13 seconds later, and MacKinnon's shot 1:13 after that capped the early scoring.

It was the fastest four goals to start a game in franchise history and third-fastest in NHL history.

Nelson, who had his 300th career assist on Nichushkin's first goal, scored midway through the game and Nichushkin scored 1:34 after Dvorsky spoiled Blackwood's goal with his sixth goal of the season.