Nathan MacKinnon’s visit to Minnesota started with goggles, flippers and a secretly filmed video of one of his pool workouts, released without his knowledge. The trip included a puck to the face, a brief trip to the dressing room and blood streaming down his face — but no stitches.
It ended with an empty-net goal and the Colorado Avalanche’s most convincing win of the playoffs, one that leaves them a win away from their first Western Conference final berth since 2022.
The 30-year-old MacKinnon was himself in every way during Colorado’s split in Minnesota. He didn’t post jaw-dropping totals — two goals, one on an empty net, in two games — but showed exactly why he’s one of the very best players in the world and perhaps the frontrunner for the Conn Smythe Trophy. He played more than 20 minutes both nights, and when he was on the ice at five-on-five, the Avalanche had 69.53 percent of the expected goal share, per Natural Stat Trick. He’s up to 12 points in eight games these playoffs. Of players whose teams are still alive, only Mitch Marner had a better points-per-game average through Monday.
Let’s get to the swimming.
On Friday evening, a video surfaced on X of MacKinnon — unaware that someone was filming him from above — doing a kick drill at a Minnesota pool while wearing flippers and goggles. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar jokingly chided “spies in our hotel,” though it’s unclear exactly where the workout took place. The video, posted by Minnesota-based account 10,000 Takes, has more than 4 million views. As much as Wild fans ran with it — one wore goggles when shown on the Jumbotron Monday night — it speaks to MacKinnon’s drive. He’s tireless in looking for an edge, even if it risks looking a little goofy.
“It’s a mentality,” Bednar said. “Nate kind of leads the charge in this, and I’m sure there are other guys that lead the charge in similar areas. They’re always talking about what players are doing in our sport to get better, what players are doing in other sports to get better. … He’s going to leave no stone unturned. …
“Nate’s obviously a guy that’s willing to think outside the box and go to different areas. Clearly, whatever he’s been doing — from a preparation standpoint, from the time he was a rookie in the league to now — it’s working.”
The NHL named MacKinnon a Hart Trophy finalist earlier this series after a 127-point season. This is his fourth consecutive season finishing at least fourth in the voting. He’s up against Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov and Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid, who each had more points, but he could very well win, considering a league-high 97 of his points came at five-on-five, and he led the league in goals.
“There’s no one else like him, really, in the league that plays that way with that sort of speed, ability, skill and then physicality and sort of emotion and passion,” Bednar said. “He’s one of one.”
The Avalanche experienced their first loss of the playoffs in Game 3, but MacKinnon scored the team’s lone goal, jamming a power-play rebound into the net after Daemon Hunt knocked Gabriel Landeskog into goalie Jesper Wallstedt. After the game, Bednar said he felt his team could generate offense only when MacKinnon’s line was on the ice.
That was no longer the case in Game 4, as Colorado got instrumental depth goals from Ross Colton and Parker Kelly, but MacKinnon still led the charge, even if he didn’t score until his empty-net goal. He played 12:19 of his five-on-five minutes against Wild star Quinn Hughes, and Colorado led 11-5 in shot attempts in that time.
Late in the second period, Devon Toews tried to flick a puck away from Mackenzie Blackwood, but he unwittingly sent it directly into MacKinnon’s face. The star center crumpled, and officials blew the play dead. Blood leaked onto the ice. Arena workers had to shovel it away before play resumed. MacKinnon went to the dressing room for the final 1:07 of the period but said he didn’t need stitches.
“It wasn’t nice,” Martin Nečas said. “But that’s kind of part of the game. I’ve been there. It’s nice that it is nothing serious and he was able to come back.”
And there wasn’t much question he’d return. As Bednar said postgame, “If he was going to be able to get out there, he was going to be out there. I don’t think that was ever in doubt.”
Colorado controlled the period, eventually taking the lead on Kelly’s first career playoff goal. Bednar had MacKinnon — his face still showing traces of blood — and his linemates on the ice to protect the one-goal lead in the final minute. Nečas picked up a loose puck near the top of the defensive zone and deked past Hughes at the blue line. MacKinnon took off behind him, and Nečas found him in the neutral zone. With open ice ahead of him, MacKinnon flung the puck into the net. He raised his hands above his head, knowing he’d sealed the victory.
It wasn’t the star center’s flashiest performance, but it was business-like and effective. Just like the team he leads.
