The Colorado Avalanche kicked off their second-round playoff series against the Minnesota Wild with a game that had everything—except maybe a few goals left for the rest of the series. In a wild 9-6 victory, 14 different players found the back of the net, including five defensemen, leaving fans wondering if the hockey gods emptied the tank in just one night.

After sweeping the LA Kings last week, the Avs came out firing on home ice. The first period alone was a rollercoaster. Minnesota had a few early looks, but Colorado turned the tide midway through, scoring three goals in just two minutes. Sam Malinski started the party with some slick work in the offensive zone, then Jack Drury cleaned up a gritty shift from the fourth line. The chaos didn't stop there—Gabe Landeskog and Brock Faber dropped the gloves, and the Wild ended up with an extra penalty. Artturi Lehkonen made them pay, burying a power-play goal to put the Avs up 3-0.

Just when it looked like Colorado might cruise, the Wild showed their playoff grit. Two minutes later, Marcus Johansson snuck one through a scramble in front, and Ryan Hartman beat the coverage to cut the lead to 3-2 by the first intermission. The message was clear: this series was going to be a fight.

The second period was more of the same. Nick Blankenburg extended the Avs' lead with a nice individual effort, but then got beat to the net by Vladimir Tarasenko just two minutes later. Quinn Hughes tied it up 4-4, capitalizing on some slow coverage from Colorado's third line. Then came the dagger: Nathan MacKinnon drew a penalty, but the Wild turned it into a shorthanded 2-on-0 rush, with Marcus Foligno finishing to take the lead. Jared Bednar sent out his second power-play unit to kill off the rest of the advantage, and the game was suddenly up for grabs.

From there, the Avs found another gear, but the message for fans is clear: you'll want to keep your eyes glued to this series. If Game 1 is any indication, goals—and drama—are in no short supply.