The Colorado Avalanche are done, and the San Jose Sharks are now 2-0 in Game 7s this postseason, following their 3-2 victory Wednesday night. Here's what happened in the NHL Wednesday night (check out replays of every playoff game on ESPN+) and what to watch for Thursday night in today's edition of ESPN Stanley Cup Playoffs Daily: Jump ahead: Last night's game | Three stars Play of the night | Today's game | Social post of the day About last night ... Game 7: San Jose Sharks 3, Colorado Avalanche 2 (Sharks win series 4-3) There were times when this felt like a coronation for the Sharks, like when Joe Pavelski -- playing in his first game since his horrific Game 7 head injury in the previous round -- scored a goal and assisted on Tomas Hertl's tally to give San Jose a 2-0 lead just 11:35 into the game. There were times when, in a postseason full of upsets, it appeared Colorado was going to pull another one, like when Mikko Rantanen scored with seven seconds left in the first, or when Tyson Jost scored 51 seconds into the third to cut the lead to 3-2. But in the end, there were too many times when the breaks went San Jose's way, such as the overturned goal on a coach's challenge in the second period because of an offside, or the stellar play by Martin Jones (27 saves) late in the game. The Sharks move on to face the St. Louis Blues. The Avalanche see a very impressive season come to an end. Three stars 1. Joe Pavelski, C, San Jose Sharks. The captain returned from concussion-like symptoms to play his first game of the series, and his impact was immediate: His deflection of a Brent Burns shot at 5:57 of the first opened the scoring, and he assisted on Hertl's goal at 11:35. He skated 19 minutes, 49 seconds for the game, although he didn't take a faceoff, sparking speculation that he might still be dealing with injury. At one point, the camera put Pavelski on the JumboTron and he responded with a fist pump, to the roar of the crowd. It was that kind of night. 2. Martin Jones, G, San Jose Sharks. Jones made 27 saves and gave up two goals, appearing to fight the puck a bit during the game. But he was there when it counted, making 14 saves in the third period to preserve the 3-2 lead and win his second Game 7 of the playoffs. 3. Samuel Girard, D, Colorado Avalanche. The young defenseman was one of the strongest players for the Avs in Game 7, with a plus-9 in Corsi, an expected goals percentage of 83.42 to lead the team and the primary assist on Rantanen's goal. Just a reminder that despite the loss, the future is bright for the Avalanche. Play of the night The Avalanche thought they tied Game 7 in the second period, but the goal was wiped off the board because "the Situation Room determined that Gabriel Landeskog did not legally tag up at the blue line prior to the puck entering the offensive zone. The decision was made in accordance to Rule 83.3 (i), 'All players of the offending team clear the zone at the same instant (skate contact with the blue line) permitting the attacking players to re-enter the attacking zone...'" In other words, the Sharks won their coach's challenge. Landeskog, to his credit, took the blame: "It's a clumsy mistake, you know? 'Get off the ice.' If I could have done something different on that play, I would have jumped the boards a lot quicker," he said. Dud of the night Here's the injury to Nathan MacKinnon. #SJSharks>#GoAvsGo>pic.twitter.com/NG6FSqGl1E - Brodie Brazil (@BrodieNBCS) May 9, 2019 Less "dud" than "bummer" of the night. Nathan MacKinnon appeared to hurt his shoulder in the first period of Game 7, limiting him to just five shifts in the period. MacKinnon said he'll have to rehab the injury, and that "they shot me up with something, and I came back." Colorado coach Jared Bednar praised his star for playing through the pain, saying, "He would have had to have been stretchered out of the building to not come back [in that game]." On the schedule Carolina Hurricanes at Boston Bruins, Game 1, 8 p.m. ET The "Bunch of Jerks" take on the Bruins in the Eastern Conference finals, trying to pull another upset in their postseason push. To do so, they're going to have to find a way to crack the wall called Tuukka Rask, who had a 1.71 goals-against average and .948 save percentage in the Bruins' six-game series win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Social post of the day The San Francisco 49ers' offensive line showed up to Game 7 and gave one another a beer bath. Quotable "We felt with the way the East is shaking out, and the West as well, we could have won the Cup this year. It truly felt like we could have won everything. It was up for grabs. It sucks." -- Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche<doc-sep>SAN JOSE — As much as the Sharks needed Joe Pavelski, Martin Jones and Joonas Donskoi to beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 on Wednesday in Game 7 of their second round playoff series at SAP Center, they also needed the eagle eyes of Dan Darrow. Immediately after it appeared that Colin Wilson had tied the game 2-2 at the 7:49 mark of the second period, Darrow, the Sharks’ video coach, notified coaches on San Jose’s bench that the Avalanche’s Gabriel Landeskog might have been offside. The Sharks believed that before the puck had entered the Sharks’ zone after a giveaway by Barclay Goodrow, Landeskog was still inside the blue line. Landeskog was away from the play and on the other side of the ice about to step onto Colorado’s bench for a line change. The Sharks challenged the goal, and after a review, the NHL’s Situation Room determined, according to its news release, that Landeskog “did not legally tag up at the blue line prior to the puck entering the offensive zone. The decision was made in accordance to Rule 83.3 (i), “All players of the offending team clear the zone at the same instant (skate contact with the blue line) permitting the attacking players to re-enter the attacking zone…” RELATED: Kiszla: In Game 7, Avs didn’t lose to San Jose; they were eliminated from NHL playoffs by absurd instant-replay nitpick Here’s the NHL rule that nullified COL goal due to offside. Landeskog either had to tag up and clear the offensive zone before any teammates re-entered on the delay or he had to get both feet off the ice on to bench. One on bench and one on ice sealed disallowed goal fate. https://t.co/rFtWBcgpU7 — Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) May 9, 2019 The original call was overturned, and instead of a tie game, it remained 2-1 Sharks with 7:46 — when the off-side infraction occurred — left in the second period. Had the goal been allowed to stand, the Avalanche would have gone on the power play with the Sharks being called for delay of game. Donskoi scored at the 12:37 mark of the second period to give the Sharks a 3-1 lead. Wilson assisted on Tyson Jost’s goal 51 seconds into the third period, but the Avalanche could get no closer. “Tough call, because if you’re wrong, it’s a penalty,” Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said. “But it was a game-changing call, and we’ve had those go against us this year at different points. It was a huge call and a gutsy call by our video coach, Dan Darrow, who gets big props for that.” Landeskog and Avalanche coach Jared Bednar gave their perspectives on the play. “I was just as surprised as anybody,” Landeskog said. “I came off and two seconds later we score. I didn’t think anything of it, to be honest with you. And then you wonder why they weren’t dropping the puck, and obviously I was still on the ice. We saw some replays on the bench and from what we saw, it could have gone either way. “I don’t know if I’ve seen that before. I mean, it’s a clumsy mistake. Get off the ice. I wish first of all didn’t turn the puck over, it’s inside the blue line. But then again, if I didn’t turn the puck over, then Nate wouldn’t have got that chance to give it to Willy. So there’s a whole sequence of events. If I could have done something different on that play, I would have jumped the boards a lot quicker.” “I would say it’s pretty rare,” Bednar said. “In a Game 7, even more so. It just doesn’t have a big affect. That player has nothing to do with the play that’s going on. It just seems like such a minute detail, whether he’s onside or offside. So it’s strange. It’s strange. It’s something It’s something we could have done without tonight, no question.” Just here to say I would have never let a gate on my bench stay closed that long if I played for the Avalanche. Landeskog would have had a water bottle in hand getting a foot rub in that amount of time he was left hanging. — Paul Bissonnette (@BizNasty2point0) May 9, 2019 Related Articles The Great Move: Wayne Gretzky will be part of Turner’s NHL studio Avalanche rookie Bo Byram back in fold after two-month bout with concussion Ball Arena’s capacity increases to 10,500 for Nuggets, Avalanche playoff games Avalanche preparing another weeklong break. But this time it’s not COVID-related. Minnesota Wild stave off elimination with just 14 shots, top Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 In those type of situations, DeBoer said Darrow’s opinion carries a ton of weight. Other coaches will give their opinion, but ultimately, Darrow’s viewpoint is the one that matters the most. “Dan is the lead on that. We get some other opinions on it, but Dan was the lead tonight. He’s the lead on it almost every night,” DeBoer said. “Ballsy call.” Goodrow had some nervous moments as the play was being reviewed. “I didn’t know he was offside,” Goodrow said. “I got the puck and I didn’t see that (Derick Brassard) was right beside me. I definitely should’ve just chipped it out, but thankfully Double D was on the ball there.”<doc-sep>SAN JOSE, Calif. — From the hockey rink to the horse track, technology is killing the spirit of the thing, too often turning our sports into an endless, whiny argument. And on Wednesday night, geeky obsession with the slow-motion, re-examination of every detail on a disputed goal killed any chance the Avalanche had of advancing in the NHL playoffs. The scoreboard showed San Jose defeated Colorado 3-2 in the decisive game of this best-of-seven series. But who really beat the Avalanche? Not Joonas Donskoi, credited with the game-winning score for San Jose on a beautiful wrap-around goal during the second period. The most valuable player for the Sharks wasn’t on the ice at the arena. It was an instant-replay official who disallowed a Colorado goal by Colin Wilson in the same soulless manner a hall monitor refuses admission to the rest room to a third-grade kid. This will be called sour grapes. Am I salty? You bet. But let’s call out this absurdity for the nonsense it is. Instant replay hasn’t made sports better. It has turned us into a nation of whiners. We argue like children on the playground, with the three most overused words in sports: Upon further review. Upon further review, the best horse didn’t win the Kentucky Derby, because it was determined Maximum Security was guilty of a foul after a 21-minute review. By the same token, Colorado didn’t lose to San Jose in Game 7, so much as Sharks coach Peter DeBoer cried foul to erase a critical goal that would’ve allowed the Avs to tie the score 2-2 in the second period. On the disallowed goal, it was determined Avalanche captain Gabe Landeskog was offside, although he was not part of the play, and standing at the doorstep to the Colorado bench. It required the freeze-frame technology of instant replay to make the call that changed all momentum in Game 7. Was the decision ultimately accurate? I’m not so certain, and neither was anybody on the Avalanche’s side. “It’s a tough call to make, so hopefully they got it right,” said Landeskog, an honorable man refusing to blame this defeat on the officials. “Listen, there were 10 things I could’ve done differently on that play. Wish I got off the ice a lot quicker, and I should’ve jumped the boards. If I could’ve done it again …” Landeskog paused, tortured by the coulda, shoulda and woulda buzzing through his brain. “It’s an expensive lesson to learn in Game 7,” he said. “It’s frustrating.” Wash away the bitter taste of the replay nitpick, and what lingers? Left for dead in the Shark Tank, the Avs thrashed and fought and spit bile until the bitter end. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong for Colorado during the opening 12 minutes of this win-or-go-home night. Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon crashed into the boards near center ice and was forced to seek medical attention back in the dressing room. Even worse, San Jose scored two quick goals, the first by captain Joe Pavelski, returning to the lineup for the first time since a bloody head injury in Round 1 against Las Vegas. But quit? Not the Avalanche. Mikko Rantanen gave Colorado life, scoring with only seven seconds remaining in the first period, cutting the visitors’ deficit to a manageable 2-1. As the Avs walked off the ice at the first intermission, one loud voice that declared the battle rejoined as players turned for the room: “We’re baaack! We’re baaack!” Those defiant words reminded me of an old movie. When surrendering would have been easy, the Avalanche instead took the hard way and decided to it would be more fun to be poltergeists at the Sharks’ victory party. Related Articles Kiszla: Nuggets fans booing Carmelo Anthony are foolish to let Melo live rent-free inside their heads Kiszla: Nastiness of Nuggets-Blazers playoff series can be summed up in single four-letter word: Melo. Lunch Special: Denver sports live chat with Mark Kiszla Kiszla: On Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon’s mission to win Stanley Cup, we are all his wingmen Kiszla: Embarrassed by Portland and old man Melo, Nuggets better buy a broom to sweep up pieces of shattered championship dream Just when San Jose had good reason to believe two goals early in the first period had buried the Western Conference’s gritty, little eighth seed? Not so fast. They’re baaack. Colorado didn’t have quite enough to beat San Jose, but the Avs have forced themselves back in the Stanley Cup conversation. This Colorado team is relentless by nature, a trait that will be essential to the Avs’ pursuit of a championship in the years ahead, every bit as critical as the development of young defenseman Cale Makar or the world-class skill of MacKinnon. As Avs defenseman Ian Cole, a two-time champion with Pittsburgh, said on the morning of Game 7: “Our goal as a hockey team is to win the Stanley Cup. … Anything short of that, you’re shooting for failure.” No more moral victories. Look out, NHL. The Avalanche has arrived. “We’re not always going to say, ‘Next year, next year, next year.’ We want to win now,” Landeskog insisted. “We are past the feel-good thing or whatever you want to call it. We want to win. And there’s only one way to do that. You have to get your name on the Cup.”<doc-sep>
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Gabriel Landeskog returned to the Colorado Avalanche bench and sat down just as teammate Colin Wilson put the puck behind San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones. Game 7 on Wednesday night was tied, 2-all, in the second period. The Avalanche had new life. Or so Landeskog believed. "I didn't think anything of it, to be honest with you. And then we were wondering why they weren't dropping the puck," the Avalanche captain said. The Sharks have a video coach, Dan Darrow, who is tasked with quickly assessing plays to see whether there's an opportunity for a coach's challenge. Most people watching the game saw Derick Brassard make a sweeping one-handed pass into the Avalanche's attacking zone and Nathan MacKinnon speed to the puck to set up Wilson, and all of them appeared to be onside. Darrow saw something else: Landeskog, standing at the door to the Avalanche bench, his skates appearing to land inside the attacking zone before the puck did. Based on Darrow's suggestion, the Sharks challenged the play with 12 minutes, 11 seconds left in the second period. Lose the challenge, and they would have been assessed a delay of game penalty. "He's the lead on it, every night. Ballsy call," Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said of Darrow. The on-ice officials discussed the play with the NHL War Room in Toronto. The decision: No goal. "I saw some replays on the bench. From what we saw, it could have gone either way," Landeskog said. The NHL didn't issue an explanation of the call until after the Sharks' 3-2 victory to eliminate the Avalanche, an uncharacteristic move given the importance of the decision and the game. "After reviewing all available replays and consulting with the Linesman, the Situation Room determined that Gabriel Landeskog did not legally tag up at the blue line prior to the puck entering the offensive zone," the league said. "The decision was made in accordance to Rule 83.3 (i), 'All players of the offending team clear the zone at the same instant (skate contact with the blue line) permitting the attacking players to re-enter the attacking zone.'" Essentially, after Landeskog went offside, his skate touched the blue line at one point, so he wasn't offside. Then his skates both went back to the right of the blue line as he slowly entered the Colorado bench, putting him offside again. To have this type of offside called was uncommon, the Avalanche said. "I would say it's pretty rare," Colorado coach Jared Bednar said with an exasperated laugh. "In a Game 7, even more so. That player has nothing to do with the play that's going on. It seems like such a minute detail, whether he's onside or offside. So it's strange, you know? It's strange. And it's something we could have done without tonight, no question." Controversial officiating in a Sharks Game 7 is officially a trend in these playoffs. They also eliminated the Vegas Golden Knights thanks in part to a five-minute major penalty on which they scored four goals and for which the NHL eventually apologized to Vegas. The decision left Colorado despondent. Just under five minutes later, Joonas Donskoi scored to make it a 3-1 lead for the Sharks. "We thought it was 2-2, and then we kinda got caught sleeping. And then it was 3-1," Avalanche defenseman Ian Cole said. "No matter what that call is, we have to keep playing. We have to learn that when things don't go our way, we have to take momentum back as quickly as possible." If that sounds like the dulcet tones of personal responsibility, that's because the Avalanche took it after Game 7. In the same dressing room where Vegas forward Jonathan Marchessault said the NHL should be "embarrassed" for the controversial major penalty in the Knights' Game 7 loss, Landeskog took the officials off the hook and shouldered the blame for the critical overturned goal. "It's a clumsy mistake, you know? 'Get off the ice.' If I could have done something different on that play, I would have jumped the boards a lot quicker," Landeskog said. "Hopefully, the linesmen got it right. I haven't been in that position at all, to have to make that call in a Game 7. It's a tough job. It's a tough call to make. Hopefully, they got it right. I'll take the blame for that. Ultimately, it's my skates on the ice. But there was a lot more to the game than that."