DENVER Jan Hejda didnt blink when he found himself open near the blue line late in a tie game.
No, he simply shut his eyes and shot.
After all, isnt that what all the goal scorers do?
The Colorado defenseman scored his first goal of the season not that he even got to see it with 7.6 seconds remaining to help the Avalanche rally for a 4-3 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
Simple closed my eyes and shot, Hejda said.
Hey, whatever works, right?
Cory Schneider hardly even had a chance, especially with so much traffic in front of the net. The Vancouver goaltender looked left and then peered to the right for a better angle of Hejda circling near the point. By the time he caught sight of Hejdas stick going back, it already was too late, the fans were cheering Colorados comeback.
Never really saw it, said Schneider, who was making his return to the net after missing a game because of the flu. A quick developing play and all of a sudden its in the back of the net.
Gabriel Landeskog, Cody McLeod and P.A. Parenteau also scored as the Avalanche beat the Canucks for the first time since Jan. 18, 2011.
Maxim Lapierre, Jannik Hansen and Jason Garrison had goals for the Northwest Division-leading Canucks, who surrendered the lead twice in the final 20 minutes. Thats very uncharacteristic and very frustrating, Garrison said.
Obviously, thats not the way we wanted to end it, Garrison said. They capitalized on their opportunities.
The Avalanche still are capitalizing on a motivational scolding from veteran goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere. He recently called his teammates out for their uninspired play in a season thats spiraled out of control. Giguere was irate since some players were more concerned about their postseason vacation plans to Las Vegas than playing hockey.
Since his rant, the Avs have picked up their intensity, winning in Anaheim, losing in a shootout to the defending Stanley Cup champion Kings in Los Angeles and rallying back to snap a 10-game winless streak against Vancouver.
Too bad Giguere didnt say something sooner. Colorado is on the cusp of being eliminated officially from the postseason for a third conseucutive season.
I felt we were only going through the motions. This is not the team we want to be, said Giguere, who made 24 saves. We want to build something for the future here. … This wasnt the year we were expecting. We only have ourselves to blame for that.
Moments after McLeod tied it for the Avalanche early in the third period, Garrison put the Canucks back on top with a shot that found a small gap between Gigueres left skate and the goal post.
The Avalanche came right back, though, throwing rush after rush at Schneider. That pressure eventually paid off when Matt Duchene sent a pass into the middle of the ice that Parenteau tipped in between Schneiders pads.
The contest looked like it was headed for overtime before Hejda scored the inner. His last goal was March 6, 2012, against Minnesota.
Im just trying to shoot a one-timer, Hejda said.
The Canucks took a 2-1 lead in the second period with two quick goals both courtesy of defensive breakdowns. Lapierre scored when Ryan OReilly made a bad clearing pass, and 2 minutes, 14 seconds later Hansen tapped in a shot in front of the goal after Greg Zanon took a bad angle on a puck.
It was Hansens first goal in 12 games.
Vancouver defenseman Kevin Bieksa made a pass in the opening period hed like to have back. Scrambling for control of the puck in the corner near his own net, Bieksa threw it toward a player streaking toward the goal. Only, it was Landeskog, who corralled the puck and lined it over Schneider to give the Avs a 1-0 lead before most of the fans had time to settle into their seats.
We know they are a very good team, Hansen said. They have a lot of skill and execute in their transition, but you dont make the right plays, they are going to put it back in your net. We saw that (Saturday).
Captain Henrik Sedin hardly was pleased with his teams play, especially this close to the postseason.
We maybe thought they were going to fold, but they came out hard, they outcompeted us, Sedin said. That cant happen. That is why they beat us.
I think we stopped competing. Thats the only thing that happened.