Avs' Nathan MacKinnon, bloodied by puck to face, returns to game

Colorado forward Nathan MacKinnon, bloodied by a puck to the face, briefly left the Avalanche's game against the Minnesota Wild on Monday in Minneapolis before returning to action.

He wound up scoring an empty-net goal in the last minute of Colorado's 5-2 win, extending his goal-scoring streak to five games.

Avalanche teammate Devon Toews tried to clear a puck out of the defensive zone and inadvertently fired the puck into MacKinnon's face with 1:07 left in the second period. MacKinnon immediately went down and was attended to by trainers, who helped him cover his bloody face with a towel. There also was blood on the inside of his visor.

MacKinnon skated toward the locker room under his own power with the score 1-1.

When the third period started, MacKinnon was back on the ice.

MacKinnon, 30, had 127 points during the regular season and led the NHL with 53 goals. Through the Avalanche's first eight playoff games this spring before Monday, he had six goals and six assists.

--Field Level Media

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This story was originally published May 11, 2026 at 7:03 PM.