Olofsson, Wedgewood lead Avalanche past Lightning 3-2 in rematch of 2022 final
Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Charle-Edouard D'Astous, left, holds off Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog as he throws a punch during a brief dustup in the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in Denver. Credit: AP/David Zalubowski
DENVER — Victor Olofsson scored twice, Scott Wedgewood made 22 saves for his NHL-leading eighth victory of the season and the Colorado Avalanche held off the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Tuesday night in a rematch of the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals.
Playing against his former team, Ross Colton also scored to help the Avalanche — who beat Tampa Bay in 2022 to win the title — push their points total to an NHL-best 21. The Lightning had won five in a row.
Olofsson’s two-goal outing came seven days after his first career hat trick in a victory over New Jersey. Nathan MacKinnon had an assist, giving him a team-high 20 points and extending his points streak to seven games.
Nikita Kucherov scored his fifth goal of the season for Tampa Bay, giving the 32-year-old right wing seven points in his past three games against the Avalanche. The goal gave him 1,005 career points, breaking a tie with Brian Propp for 100th place in NHL history.
Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 31 shots.
With the game tied at 1 in the second period, Colorado scored twice in 1:13 seconds, the first of which came from Olofsson on the power play against the NHL’s third-best penalty kill.
A backhand goal from Brayden Point early in the third period cut the Avalanche’s advantage in half.
Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper, center, reacts to referees in the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Colorado Avalanche, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in Denver. Credit: AP/David Zalubowski
Up next
Avalanche: At Edmonton on Saturday night.
Lightning: At Vegas on Thursday night.
