- T.J. Hughes scored his first NHL goal in his eighth game
- The undrafted Avalanche rookie put Colorado up 4-2 in a 5-2 win over the Penguins
- Read below for how Hughes got here and what else happened in Denver
T.J. Hughes finally has his first NHL goal.
The Avalanche rookie scored it Friday night at 14:57 of the second period, tapping in a centering pass from Nathan MacKinnon to put Colorado up 4-2 on the Penguins. It came in his eighth game.
Watch the goal:
The celebration was a good one. Cale Makar wrapped him up near the net, and Gabriel Landeskog squirted him with water as he skated past the bench.
Hughes had one assist and two penalty minutes before Friday. Nothing about his path to this point has been typical.
He went undrafted, then spent four years at the University of Michigan. His best season was his last, when he put up 22 goals and 35 assists for 57 points in 40 games. The Avalanche signed the 24-year-old to a one-year entry-level contract in April and sent him to the Colorado Eagles on a tryout, where he had a goal and an assist in two AHL games.
Colorado went on to win 5-2 after falling behind early. Evgeni Malkin and Bryan Rust gave Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead 29 seconds apart in the first period.
Artturi Lehkonen then scored twice, including the game-tying goal 25 seconds into the second. Landeskog put the Avalanche ahead before Hughes added to it. MacKinnon finished with a goal and three assists, scoring on the power play late in the third. He also had a penalty shot stopped by Arturs Silovs.
The Penguins lost another one, though Sidney Crosby moved past Joe Thornton for seventh on the all-time assist list with the pass on Rust’s goal.
The Avalanche improved to 5-2-1 and hit the road Monday in Philadelphia. Hughes will try to keep his spot in the lineup and pick up goal number two.
