Colorado

RSL Falls 3-2 at Colorado in Rocky Mountain Cup Finale | Real Salt Lake

Published

2 years ago

July 21, 2024

RSL Falls 3-2 at Colorado in Rocky Mountain Cup Finale | Real Salt Lake

COMMERCE CITY, Colorado (Sat, July 20, 2024) – Real Salt Lake (12-5-8 / 44 points / 3rd West) fell to regional rival Colorado Rapids 3-2, losing control of the Rocky Mountain Cup in a non-Covid year for the first time since 2015. RSL winger Andrés Gómez scored his 12th and 13th goals of the year, his fourth multi-goal game of the season, to move into a tie for fifth in the MLS Golden Boot race.

Kicking off for the first 45 on a rainy night at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Real Salt Lake came out flying, thoroughly controlling play as it broke through to take an early lead in the 9th minute. Seeming as though the Claret-and-Cobalt might cruise to a 15th Rocky Mountain Cup victory, the tables quickly turned as it would be Colorado that scored in lightning-quick back-to-back fashion in the 34th and 39th minutes to seize control of the Cup, Jonathan Lewis and Sam Vines the scorers. Heading into the locker room, Pablo Mastroeni’s side was dominant in every statistic except the scoreline, owning more than two-thirds of possession and more than doubling Colorado in passing (359-147).

During the halftime break, lightning strikes in the area postponed play for nearly two hours before play resumed at 10:21 p.m. local time.

It wouldn’t take long for RSL to square the affair in the second half, Gómez collecting his 13th of the 2024 campaign and second of the match with a beautiful left-footed strike in the 49th minute. Gómez’ outside-the-box strike continues his nearly unbelievable run of form, marking his 13th goal in the last 140 days after he scored just once in his first calendar year with the Club. The match would remain on equal footing, both teams struggling through adverse conditions until Colorado won a late penalty kick on a controversial handball call in the 85th minute, Cole Bassett stepping up to convert the chance and give his team the decisive 3-2 lead.

Despite the scoreline, RSL dominated the run of play, boasting 62% of the possession and nearly doubling Colorado in passes completed (609-327). Nine RSL players registered at least 30 passes, Justen Glad leading the way in volume with a staggering 99 while Braian Ojeda and Bryan Oviedo led in accuracy at 95% and 92%, respectively.

The loss gives Colorado its first Rocky Mountain Cup title since the disputed 2020 affair, just its sixth in the 20-year history of the rivalry. RSL still holds a commanding lead in the all-time Cup standings, winning 14 total and six of the last eight. A bright spot for RSL, Glad made his first start since June 1, returning from a six-week injury hiatus, playing the full 90 minutes. Additionally, Real Salt Lake fans got their first look at attacking midfielder Benji Michel, the 26-year-old former U.S. youth international making his Club debut after being signed earlier this week. Michel most recently played for Portuguese side Arouca and previously made 119 appearances across all competitions, scoring 19 goals and nine assists for Orlando City FC from 2019-2022.

RSL – 9’ – Andrés Gómez (Bryan Oviedo): With RSL pressing as Colorado possessed the ball deep in its defensive third, a clever intervention by Oviedo sent it to Gómez in the middle of the park with only green grass ahead of him. Immediately sprinting forward with Anderson Julio stretching out the back line, Gómez took two touches before launching a low, bouncing rocket at Colorado goalkeeper Zack Steffen’s near post, the technique and power of his right-footed shot proving too much as it whistled into the back of the net.

COL – 34’ – Jonathan Lewis (Cole Bassett, Rafael Navarro): Controlling it deep in Rapids territory, Moïse Bombito spotted the run of Rafael Navarro into the attacking third and played a well-aimed through-ball sending his striker to the right corner of the box. Defended well by Glad, Navarro passed centrally to Cole Bassett who immediately switched play to the left side of the box with a one-time lofted pass over the last RSL defender. Running onto it with his preferred right foot, Jonathan Lewis caught it cleanly on the half-volley to deposit the near post finish and steal one back against the run of play.

COL – 39’ – Sam Vines (Jonathan Lewis, Cole Bassett): As RSL controlled it on the edge of their own box, Sam Vines cleverly jumped a passing lane to intercept the ball and start a quick counter attack. Vines’ intervention sent it to Bassett who then forwarded possession to Lewis as he charged deep into the right side of the box. Racing to the end line, Lewis whipped a low pass across the face of the goal as Vines, following the play after starting it himself, smashed the point-blank finish into the roof of the net.

RSL – 49’ – Andrés Gómez (Anderson Julio, Emeka Eneli): As Real Salt Lake began their buildup, Emeka Eneli received the ball in his own half and charged forward at a rapid pace. Dribbling through two defenders, Eneli laid it off to Julio at the top of the box. Julio held up the ball, drawing multiple defenders before passing to Gomez on the right side of the box. Presenting that he would take his touch further into the box, Gomez’s touch stopped the ball in place as his marker went flying by. Turning around centrally to get back on the ball, Gomez took two quick dribbles before unleashing a left-footed laser that curled perfectly over a helpless Steffen and into the top corner netting at the far post.

COL – 89’ – Cole Bassett (Penalty Kick): As the game trended towards a draw and a fourth consecutive Rocky Mountain Cup for RSL with less than 10 minutes to play, Colorado came forward to win an 85th-minute corner. Whipping it into the traffic of the box, Glad was called for a handball, awarding the Rapids a late penalty kick. Bassett stepping up to take it, he sent GK Gavin Beavers the wrong way with a powerful shot to the left.

Andrés Gómez scores his 12th and 13th goals of the year to collect his fourth multi-goal game of 2024 and move into a tie for 5th place in the MLS Golden Boot Race, just five goals behind current leader and teammate, Captain Chicho Arango (17).

First-time All-Star, homegrown center back Justen Glad made his first start since June 1, playing the full 90 minutes after his return Wednesday at LAFC for one official minute following a six-match injury absence.

RSL dropped to third place in the Western Conference standings, trailing LA Galaxy and LAFC by five and three points, respectively. The four days since Wednesday’s draw to LAFC are the first period that RSL has not been in first place in the Western Conference since mid-March.

RSL faces defeat for just the second time on the road since the season opener against Inter Miami (Feb. 21, 0-2). The loss brings RSL’s record away from home to a still-impressive 4-3-7. Despite the Club’s -4 goal differential over the last four games, RSL remains second in the West at +17., trailing only LAFC (+18).

First-time All-Star and homegrown defender Justen Glad made his return to the starting lineup for the first time since June 1, playing the full 90. He led the match with 99 completed passes, a season high for him, at a staggering 92% completion rate.

Newly signed RSL attacking midfielder Benji Michel made his debut, coming on in the 74th minute. The 26-year-old former U.S. youth international most recently played for Portuguese side Arouca and previously made 119 appearances across all competitions, scoring 19 goals and tallying nine assists for Orlando City FC from 2019-2022.

Real Salt Lake (4-2-3-1): Gavin Beavers; Justen Glad; Bryana Vera; Andrew Brody (Bode Hidalgo, 62’); Bryan Oviedo (Alex Katranis, 62’); Emeka Eneli; Braian Ojeda (Nelson Palacio, 62’); Andrés Gómez; Diego Luna; Matt Crooks; Anderson Julio (Benji Michel, 75’)

Subs not used: Zac MacMath, Maikel Chang, Philip Quinton, Noel Caliskan, Matthew Bell

Colorado Rapids (4-2-3-1): Zack Steffen; Moïse Bombito; Andreas Maxsø; Keegan Rosenberry; Sam Vines; Connor Ronan; Oliver Larraz (Darren Yapi, 65’); Omir Fernández (Calvin Harris, 65’); Jonathan Lewis (Kimani Stewart-Baynes, 78’); Cole Bassett; Rafael Navarro (Jasper Löffelsend, 89’)

Subs not used: Michael Edwards, Lalas Abubakar, Sebastian Anderson, Ethan Bandre, Wayne Frederick

COL: Moïse Bombito (Caution, 23’)

COL: Darren Yapi (Caution, 74’)

RSL: Diego Luna (Caution, 88’)

RSL: HC Pablo Mastroeni (Caution, 88’)

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‘It’s Not a Penalty’: Bednar Rips Officials For MacKinnon Ejection | Colorado Hockey Now

Published

2 hours ago

March 11, 2026

Press Room

‘It’s Not a Penalty’: Bednar Rips Officials For MacKinnon Ejection | Colorado Hockey Now

Head coach Jared Bednar is often calm and calculated during his postgame press conferences. But his frustrations were made loud and clear on Tuesday, following the Avalanche’s 4-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers at Ball Arena in a game that saw superstar center Nathan MacKinnon get ejected late in the second period.

With the Avs on the power play trailing 2-1, MacKinnon entered the Oilers’ zone with speed and received an east-to-west pass from Martin Necas. MacKinnon’s shot went wide, but with little space to maneuver because Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse was cutting in on him, MacKinnon barreled into goalie Connor Ingram and was handed a five-minute major and a game misconduct.

“[MacKinnon] makes the play on the puck, and I got his toes cutting up ice probably through the top of the paint, and Ingram’s on the goal line. There’s no chance that he hits the goalie if Nurse doesn’t run into him. He’s not hitting the goalie,” Bednar said, after watching his team fall to 43-11-9 on the season.

Ingram left the game with an injury and did not return.

“I don’t care if he’s injured, not injured, if it’s a severe crash, not a severe crash. It’s not a penalty,” Bednar said. “If you put guys in your own goalie, it’s not a penalty.”

The MacKinnon call prematurely ended the Avs’ second power play of the night. They successfully killed off the 4:05 remaining on the major and tied the game, but couldn’t secure a point.

Ross Colton, Necas, and Valeri Nichushkin had Colorado’s goals. Unfortunately for Colton, he left the game with an upper-body injury in the second period and did not return.

“He took a shot from a player during the game and he kind of tightened up so he’s got an upper-body injury. Hopefully he loosens up for tomorrow and can play in Seattle,” Bednar said.

Mackenzie Blackwood started for the Avs after getting pulled in Dallas two games ago. He let in three goals on his first 10 shots before locking in later in the game. Blackwood made several big stops during the lengthy PK before Nichushkin tied it up. But it still wasn’t enough. Blackwood finished with 20 saves.

The Oilers finished 2-for-4 on the power play, getting the game-winning goal from Connor McDavid on a spectacular give-and-go with Leon Draisaitl with 10:57 remaining in regulation. Both of them finished with two points, while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had two goals.

Colorado had a power play after that, but could not capitalize. Necas’ tally came on the PP earlier in the evening, and the Avs finished 1-for-3. Colton’s goal came just 24 seconds into the first period, which snapped his nine-game goalless drought.

All of the Avalanche’s best plays were in the first and third periods. The second was a different story.

“I’ll give you an example, three or four times at the start of the second period, we try to go in on a rush, and we lose it and change, and they get odd-man rushes and a scoring chance against,” Bednar said. “You can’t do that. You can’t do that against anybody, never mind the best offensive team in the league.”

Edmonton also played with a shortened bench. On top of losing Ingram to an injury, forward Colton Dach, and defenseman Ty Emberson also left with ailments and did not return. From the moment MacKinnon was ejected, the pace of the game changed. Frustrations were noticeable on both sides.

“It was a great game up until that,” Nazem Kadri said. “I think it was a good battle out there. Players were playing hard and, you know, it’s unfortunate that’s how it’s gotta end.”

Kadri was also vehemently against the MacKinnon call.

“I think Nate makes an effort. He’s diving across the top of the crease to try to get out of the way, like that’s a part of the rule for the player to at least make some sort of attempt. There was clear contact. I have no idea how that was a five-minute,” he said.

Good: Nichushkin Is Heating Up

When he’s been available to play, there haven’t been many bad stretches for Nichushkin. His on-ice production has been solid over the past three regular seasons. But this year, the 30-year-old veteran forward has had tough stretches. Entering the break, and coming out of it, Nichushkin wasn’t producing at the rate he usually does.

Over the past three games, he’s looked more like the power forward that we’ve grown accustomed to. And he’s gotten rewarded for it on the scoresheet.

Bad: The Penalty

I had a hard time deciphering if it was or wasn’t a penalty on MacKinnon when it first happened. I watched replays, I slowed them down, and I started to form an opinion.

But regardless of whether MacKinnon should’ve been called for anything, it shouldn’t have been a five. That part I can’t wrap my head around.

Bednar was frustrated and asked about it again. He added, “I really don’t give a crap if the goalies hurt. That’s on their D.”

Good:

Bad: Defensive Breakdowns

Each of the first three Edmonton goals were scored by guys that were open in front of the goal. On the first two,

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Colorado residents should prepare for Xcel power outages this week as fire danger surges, utility says

Published

14 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Colorado residents should prepare for Xcel power outages this week as fire danger surges, utility says

Xcel Energy is warning its customers along the Front Range to be prepared for possible power outages this week as the risk of wildfire surges due to hot and dry weather.

“Due to the elevated risk of wildfire, enhanced powerline safety settings are active across out Front Range service territory,” according to a social media post from the utility. The settings make the powerlines more sensitive and prompt a line to stop the flow of electricity if an object touches a line.

The highest risk for wildfire danger will be Thursday, Friday and Saturday, when strong gusty winds are forecasted, according to the National Weather Service.

Humidity could be as low as 10% and winds may top 25 mph, leading to critical and extremely critical fire weather between Thursday and Saturday, forecasters said.

Tens of thousands of customers have lost power in recent months from planned outages during fire danger and powerline damage from high winds.

In December, 86,040 Xcel customers lost power because of a mix of planned shutoffs and downed powerlines from high winds. The decision led some customers to criticize the utility, asking it to fine-tune its weather responses.

Some schools in northern Colorado schools preemptively canceled classes in January after Xcel announced a planned power shutoff for 9,000 customers in the area.

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An Evening Against Edmonton | Colorado Avalanche

Published

1 day ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

An Evening Against Edmonton | Colorado Avalanche

Edmonton Oilers (31-25-8) @ Colorado Avalanche (43-10-9)

8 p.m. MT | Ball Arena | Watch: TNT, truTV, HBO Max | Listen: Altitude Sports Radio (92.5 FM)

After back-to-back shootout victories, the Avalanche concludes its two-game homestand on Tuesday against the Edmonton Oilers. This game is an Avalanche Cup Classic, presented by KeyBank, which will honor the 2022 Avs team that won the Stanley Cup and defeated the Oilers in the Western Conference Final. Tuesday’s game is the second of three regular-season meetings between the teams, as the Avalanche won 9-1 in Edmonton on November 8th, and they’ll play in Alberta on April 13th.

Sunday Success

The Avalanche defeated the Minnesota Wild 3-2 in a shootout on Sunday at Ball Arena. Nathan MacKinnon and Nicolas Roy both scored for Colorado while Nazem Kadri posted an assist in his second Avs debut. In net for Colorado, Scott Wedgewood stopped 32 of the 34 shots he faced. MacKinnon opened the scoring at 12:19 of the second period with his 43rd goal of the season via a right-circle one-timer set up by Kadri, who began the play with an interception below the offensive-zone goal line. Kirill Kaprizov tied the game for Minnesota with a power-play goal at 4:17 of the third period when his pass from the right circle deflected into the net. The Wild took a 2-1 lead at 7:01 of the third period when Nico Sturm scored a shorthanded breakaway. Colorado tied the game at 12:39 of the third period when Nicolas Roy scored his first goal as an Av and sixth of the season via a net-front deflection on Brett Kulak’s slap shot. In the shootout, Valeri Nichushkin scored for Colorado in the first round, Matt Boldy scored for Minnesota in the second round and MacKinnon tallied the winner in the fourth round.

Leading the Way

Nate the Great

MacKinnon leads the NHL in goals (43) while ranking second in points (104) and third in assists (61).

All Hail Cale

Among NHL defensemen, Cale Makar is tied for second in points (66) while ranking fourth in goals (19) and assists (47).

Marty Party

Martin Necas is tied for seventh in the NHL in points (76).

Series History

In 135 regular-season games against the Oilers, the Avalanche has a record of 74-49-6-6. The teams have met three times in the playoffs, with the Avs winning the 1997 Western Conference Semifinals in five games and the 2022 Western Conference Final in four contests.

Sunday in Sin City

The Oilers defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday. In the second period, Trent Frederic opened the scoring for Edmonton at 3:21 before Vegas’ Noah Hanifin tied the game at 13:09. The Oilers took a 3-1 third-period lead after goals from Vasily Podkolzin at 2:34 and Leon Draisaitl at 11:53. Jack Eichel cut the Golden Knights’ deficit to one with a shorthanded goal at 16:43 of the third period. Edmonton took a 4-2 lead when Kasperi Kapanen scored an empty-net goal at 18:03 of the third period.