Mystery Behind Avalanche’s Stunning Meltdown: What Went Wrong in Their Shocking Collapse?

MacKinnon’s Colorado Avalanche had just suffered what he called “definitely” the most gutting loss of his career, a shocking — a word we throw around far too often in the sports world, but the only printable one that fits here — 4-2 Game 7 loss to the rival Dallas Stars in which they blew a 2-0 third-period lead. It was a game the Avalanche had complete control of, and it was a flabbergasting collapse.

That it was Mikko Rantanen who scored three of those third-period goals and assisted on the fourth made it either a fairy tale or a horror flick, depending on who you were rooting for. But if you were MacKinnon, did the fact that it was Rantanen — your close friend, your linemate for nearly a decade, your running buddy with whom you were supposed to enter the Hall of Fame someday — make it any worse? Make the knife dig a little deeper, twist a little harder?

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