I am not a Colorado Avalanche fan, but I loved their teams in the early 2000s. (Photo via Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
The opening game of this series was tied 2-2 after two periods. With just over a minute left in the third, Milan Hejduk gave the top-seeded ’00-’01 Avalanche a 3-2 lead. However, defenseman Derek Morris tied it for the 8th-seeded ’02-’03 Avalanche with just 17 seconds remaining in regulation and forced overtime. The ’02-’03 Avalanche garnered more of the scoring opportunities in OT, but it was Hejduk who won it for the top seed in the final minute of the second overtime. The ’00-’01 Avalanche didn’t need a double overtime winner to win Game 2 as they won easily, 4-1. Joe Sakic scored twice while goaltender Patrick Roy stopped 24 of 25 shots against. The ’02-’03 Avalanche got on the board in the series with a 5-2 win in Game 3 as defenseman Rob Blake‘s three points (1G, 2A) led them offensively. They then evened up the series with a 5-3 win in Game 4. Hejduk scored twice and added an assist for the ’02-’03 Avalanche.
In Game 5, a shorthanded goal from Adam Deadmarsh seven plus minutes into the second gave the ’00-’01 Avalanche a 2-1 lead. However, the ’02-’03 Avalanche would score three unanswered goals to take a 4-3 lead and they would hang on late for a 4-3 win to take a 3-2 series lead. The top seed would dominate their way to a 9-3 win in Game 6 to force a Game 7. Hejduk (4G), Sakic (2G, 2A) and defenseman Ray Bourque (4A) all posted four points in the win while Alex Tanguay posted three (3A). Game 7 was tied 1-1 after the first period, but the ’00-’01 Avalanche held a 3-1 lead by the halfway point of the second thanks to two goals from Sakic. The score was later 4-3 in favor of the top seed, but defenseman Greg de Vries potted a PP marker in the middle of the third to seal the series for the ’00-’01 Avalanche.
| 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Second Overtime | Total | |
| ’02-’03 Avalanche | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| ’00-’01 Avalanche | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
GAME SUMMARY: ’00-’01 COL – 4 ’02-’03 COL – 3 (2OT) (1-0 ’00-’01 COL)
STARS OF THE GAME:
1st Star: RW – Milan Hejduk (’00-’01 COL) – 2 G 1 A 3 P +2 7 S
2nd Star: G – Patrick Roy (’00-’01 COL) – W 3.00 GAA .947 SV% (54 SV’s)
3rd Star: D – Ray Bourque (’00-’01 COL) – 1 G 2 A 3 P +2 7 S
| 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Overtime | Total | |
| ’02-’03 Avalanche | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 |
| ’00-’01 Avalanche | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | 4 |
GAME SUMMARY: ’00-’01 COL – 4 ’02-’03 COL – 1 (2-0 ’00-’01 COL)
STARS OF THE GAME:
1st Star: C – Joe Sakic (’00-’01 COL) – 2 G 0 A 2 P +1 9 S
2nd Star: C – Peter Forsberg (’00-’01 COL) – 1 G 1 A 2 P +2 1 S
3rd Star: D – Ray Bourque (’00-’01 COL) – 1 G 1 A 2 P +1 4 S
| 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Overtime | Total | |
| ’00-’01 Avalanche | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 2 |
| ’02-’03 Avalanche | 2 | 1 | 2 | — | 5 |
GAME SUMMARY: ’02-’03 COL – 5 ’00-’01 COL – 2 (2-1 ’00-’01 COL)
STARS OF THE GAME:
1st Star: D – Rob Blake (’02-’03 COL) – 1 G 2 A 3 P +3 6 S 2 PIM
2nd Star: RW – Milan Hejduk (’02-’03 COL) – 0 G 2 A 2 P +1 4 S
3rd Star: C – Joe Sakic (’02-’03 COL) – 1 G 0 A 1 P +2 8 S 2 PIM
| 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Overtime | Total | |
| ’00-’01 Avalanche | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 |
| ’02-’03 Avalanche | 3 | 1 | 1 | — | 5 |
GAME SUMMARY: ’02-’03 COL – 5 ’00-’01 COL – 3 (2-2)
STARS OF THE GAME:
1st Star: RW – Milan Hejduk (’02-’03 COL) – 2 G 1 A 3 P +3 7 S
2nd Star: LW – Alex Tanguay (’00-’01 COL) – 2 G 0 A 2 P +1 4 S
3rd Star: C – Peter Forsberg (’02-’03 COL) – 1 G 1 A 2 P +3 4 S
| 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Overtime | Total | |
| ’02-’03 Avalanche | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | 4 |
| ’00-’01 Avalanche | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 3 |
GAME SUMMARY: ’02-’03 COL – 4 ’00-’01 COL – 3 (3-2 ’02-’03 COL)
STARS OF THE GAME:
1st Star: RW – Milan Hejduk (’02-’03 COL) – 2 G 1 A 3 P Even 9 S
2nd Star: C – Joe Sakic (’02-’03 COL) – 1 G 2 A 3 P Even 5 S
3rd Star: C – Peter Forsberg (’00-’01 COL) – 2 G 0 A 2 P +1 3 S
| 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Overtime | Total | |
| ’00-’01 Avalanche | 1 | 3 | 5 | — | 9 |
| ’02-’03 Avalanche | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 3 |
GAME SUMMARY: ’00-’01 COL – 9 ’02-’03 COL – 3 (3-3)
STARS OF THE GAME:
1st Star: RW – Milan Hejduk (’00-’01 COL) – 4 G 0 A 4 P +4 10 S
2nd Star: C – Joe Sakic (’00-’01 COL) – 2 G 2 A 4 P +4 12 S
3rd Star: D – Ray Bourque (’00-’01 COL) – 0 G 4 A 4 P +4 8 S
| 1st Period | 2nd Period | 3rd Period | Overtime | Total | |
| ’02-’03 Avalanche | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 3 |
| ’00-’01 Avalanche | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | 5 |
GAME SUMMARY: ’00-’01 COL – 5 ’02-’03 COL – 3 (4-3 ’00-’01 COL)
STARS OF THE GAME:
1st Star: C – Joe Sakic (’00-’01 COL) – 2 G 1 A 3 P Even 8 S
2nd Star: C – Peter Forsberg (’02-’03 COL) – 1 G 1 A 2 P +2 4 S
3rd Star: D – Greg de Vries (’00-’01 COL) – 1 G 1 A 2 P +2 4 S
Up next in the 4-5 matchup are the ’01-’02 Avs and the ’99-’00 Avs!
