It’s been a while since the Avalanche have had to grind for 60 minutes in a close game. They only secured one point on Thursday night against the

It’s been a while since the Colorado Avalanche have had to grind through 60 minutes of a close hockey game. They did plenty of things well Thursday night against the Nashville Predators, but couldn’t find a way to get it across the finish line. The result was a 3-2 overtime loss and just one point to show for it.

In some ways, it was a different kind of night for Colorado. Most of its recent games have been decided by three or more goals, with the winning team usually pulling away. Thursday was a much tighter contest, one that required the Avalanche to find a way to win some of the smaller battles.

But in another sense, it was a familiar story. The power play couldn’t deliver a go-ahead goal when it had the opportunity, and the opposition’s man advantage ultimately provided the game-winner.

Colorado had a power play with 3:08 remaining in regulation and the score tied 2-2. It had opportunities to take the lead but couldn’t convert. Then, in overtime, Steven Stamkos buried a four-on-three power-play goal to give Nashville the extra point.

It’s a process for the Avs right now. They’ve struggled over the past couple of weeks and are facing adversity much earlier in the season than they did a year ago. There’s something to be said for having to grind through a stretch like this, build some calluses and figure out how to get yourself out of it.

Head coach Jared Bednar seemed to appreciate the effort, even if the result wasn’t what his team wanted.

“I think there’s enough that we can show, and some things that we can continue to improve on,” Bednar said, as the Avs fell to 6-1-2 at home. “I think they should feel good about their effort, you know, our effort, and that’s where it starts for me. Now go repeat that same effort, clean some things up. Like this is a process. We’re in game whatever it is, 17.”

The standings aren’t exactly screaming for concern, either. Colorado is 9-6-2 and currently eighth in the Western Conference. Had it secured the second point Thursday, it would have jumped to second in the Central Division.

Still, the Avalanche know there’s work to do. And having to play through games like this could be beneficial as the season progresses.

“It’s kind of like playoff hockey in a way. Everybody’s defending well, low scoring, and just you know, kind of a gritty game,” defenseman Sam Malinski said. “So yeah, it’s good to play those right now.”

Jaden Schwartz and Parker Kelly scored for Colorado, which is now 0-1-1 over its last two games after winning three straight. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 22 of 25 shots and fell to 8-3-1 on the season.

The message from the Avalanche after the game was to take the positives, learn from the negatives and move on.

“It’s a stepping stone to where we want to go,” defenseman Devon Toews said. “I think it’s a better blueprint of what we need to do night in, night out, in order to have success in this league.”

Toews hit the post in overtime before taking the penalty that led to Stamkos’ game-winner.

How It Happened

The opening goal came from none other than Ross Colton. Nashville’s forward buried the fourth shot of a flurry of opportunities around Blackwood’s crease, putting the Predators ahead 4:01 into the game.

Nashville had the jump early and looked like the hungrier team throughout much of the first period. But the lead didn’t last.

A strong forecheck from Brock Nelson helped the Avalanche get back into the game. Nelson chased the puck carrier behind the Nashville net and stripped him of possession. The puck eventually found Martin Necas, who set up Schwartz in the slot for his seventh goal of the season at 9:11.

That was Colorado’s only goal of the opening period. Nashville eventually regained the lead with one of the more impressive first NHL goals you’ll see.

Vitali Pinchuk, the undrafted 24-year-old rookie who joined the Predators as a free agent from the KHL, had very little room to work with. But he managed to get a backhand shot past Blackwood and into the top of the net. It was an incredibly difficult finish, and one that would be tough to replicate even if he tried.

The 2-1 Nashville lead lasted until 5:08 of the second period, when Kelly scored his third goal of the season.

The fourth-line winger found himself on a two-on-one with Fedor Svechkov. Kelly looked over at his linemate before deciding to keep the puck and shoot. It was the right decision. His release beat former Avalanche goaltender Justus Annunen over the shoulder and into the top of the net to tie the game at two.

Neither team found another goal in regulation.

Colorado finished 0-for-3 on the power play and 4-for-5 on the penalty kill. The Avalanche had successfully killed off four Nashville power plays before Toews’ penalty in overtime gave the Predators the opening they needed.

Good: The Defense Tightened Up

The first period was sloppy. Bednar knew it, and the players knew it.

But after the first intermission, Colorado looked much more composed defensively. The Avalanche tightened things up, limited Nashville’s opportunities and looked a lot more like the team that made defending a strength last season.

That’s an important positive to take from this game. Defensive breakdowns have been an issue for Colorado during stretches of the past couple of weeks, but the team did a much better job of cleaning things up after the first period.

It wasn’t perfect, but there was noticeable improvement as the game went along. Those are things you can build on.

Bad: Special Teams Couldn’t Deliver

This one ultimately came down to special teams.

Nashville entered Thursday with the fourth-best power play in the NHL, so the Avalanche knew they were going to have their hands full. Colorado’s penalty kill did a good job for most of the night, shutting down four opportunities before the overtime sequence.

But the power play remains a problem.

The Avalanche had a chance to take control of the game with just over three minutes remaining in regulation. Instead, they went without a goal on their third man advantage of the night. They generated some opportunities, but couldn’t find the finish.

And then, when the Predators got their opportunity in overtime, they made Colorado pay.