DENVER – Shots sailed wide, passes missed the mark and the Wild put itself offside a few times — the usual signs a team was playing a game that counted for the first time in nearly six months.
But perhaps the most obvious tell that the Wild was just settling in for another season was it neglecting Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon, who was skating untouched to the front of the net and burying the decisive goal in a season-opening 4-1 loss for the Wild on Thursday night at Pepsi Center — a result that didn't catch up to the feeling of the game until the waning minutes.
"A tough first one," defenseman Ryan Suter said, "but we got a lot more to go."
With 9 minutes, 34 seconds left in the second period, MacKinnon cut to the middle while all the attention was on puck-carrier Mikko Rantanen. Once Rantanen heaved the puck from the flank toward the crease, MacKinnon was there all alone to redirect the feed over goalie Devan Dubnyk's left skate.
"He can get there," said Dubnyk, who totaled 36 saves. "He's fast."
By then, Colorado was mostly in control — regularly getting quality looks on Dubnyk and limiting the Wild's time in the offensive zone.
Even the team's lone goal came off a quick stint in front of Avalanche goalie Semyon Varlamov.
After winger Zach Parise collected a turnover, he funneled the puck deep and then connected on a Mikko Koivu pass at 6:14 of the first period to give the Wild an early lead.