NHL: Avalanche defeat Wild 2-1

March 31, 2007

The Colorado Avalanche beat the Minnesota Wild 2-1 with goalie Peter Budaj's 10th win in March, keeping their playoff hopes alive.

Marian Gaborik scored the opener for the Wild only 1:21 into the first period, but answered goals from Justin Lilles and Peter Stastny in the second period lifted the Avalanche to victory.

With the win, the Avalanche tied a team record with 11 wins in a month. Budaj had a 10-0-2 record this March, tying the franchise record for wins in any month. It was set by the Quebec Nordiques's Daniel Bouchard in February 1981.

Colorado is five games behind the Calgary Flames in the race for the 8th spot the Western Conference, the last spot for the playoffs. The Flames play the Vancouver Canucks Saturday night and play Colorado Tuesday night.

Minnesota lost its third straight game, jeapordizing their chances in their close race with Vancouver for the Northwest Division title.

Three Stars
1. Colorado: J. Liles 2. Colorado: P. Budaj 3. Colorado: T. Arnason