Without a goal in his last 19 games, Jonathan Drouin put an end to the lethargy by leading the Colorado Avalanche to a 5-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday night at Ball Arena.
The Quebec forward and his teammates were able to silence young Connor Bedard again. For Drouin, the satisfaction was that he had finally freed himself from his bonds.
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In fact, very few strings have been shaken since the former Montreal Canadiens' shot hit the crossbar right in Petr Mrazek's net. Some confusion followed, but Drouin knew he had just scored.
With this eleventh goal of the season, he surpassed his total points from the previous three seasons with the Habs. He also received an assist for Nathan MacKinnon's hit that evening.
The Nova Scotian collected two goals and two assists, earning a point in the 30th consecutive home duel and increasing his personal total to 105 points. He now has as many as Nikita Kucherov at the top of the league's goalscoring list.
Cale Makar also stood out with two points.
Goaltender Justus Annunen recorded his second shutout in a row thanks to his 36 saves. The Finn posted his first career shutout last Thursday in another 5-0 win over the Blackhawks, this time in Chicago.