Nathan MacKinnon leaves Avalanche shaken after scary puck to the face
Photo credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
Nathan MacKinnon gave Jared Bednar the scare Colorado could not afford, then turned the night into a pressure point.
The Avalanche center took a puck to the face Monday night in Minnesota during Game 4 against the Wild.
He was shaken up, left the ice bleeding, and put Colorado's entire bench on edge in a series already running hot.
MacKinnon is not just Colorado's top center; he is the player who drives their pace, entries, and power play decisions.
Colorado went 55-16-11 this season with a +99 goal differential, and that engine runs through No. 29.
MacKinnon returned to start the third period, which changed the mood fast.
The clip shows MacKinnon dropping immediately after the puck catches him up high.
MacKinnon's return changes Bednar's next call
Bednar still has to manage the fallout. A return in the third does not erase swelling, vision concerns, or the next-morning medical check.
MacKinnon has 6 goals, 6 assists and 12 points through 8 playoff games, with a +7 rating and 21:04 in average ice time.
That workload matters because Colorado do not replace him with one player. They would have to spread faceoffs, special-teams touches, and late-game matchups across the top six.
Martin Necas can carry more puck touches. Gabriel Landeskog can take heavier wall work. But neither player changes the opponent's defensive structure the way MacKinnon does.
Minnesota know that too. The Wild finished 46-24-12, and their home ice has turned this matchup into a grind rather than a track meet.
The story is not only that MacKinnon came back. It is that Bednar now has to decide how hard to lean on him after a scary hit changed the temperature of the series.
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