Deen's Daily: Frozen Frenzy; Maurice gets an extension: Another Avalanche win

The NHL played a full day of hockey on Tuesday, staging all 32 games for the second annual “Frozen Frenzy” on ESPN. The games were breathtaking and started every 15 minutes from 4:00 p.m. (MT) to 9:00 p.m. (MT). Vegas and LA played the final game, which ended well after 1 a.m. for East Coast fans.

One of the highlights of the packed day was the Nashville Predators finally winning their first game, defeating the Boston Bruins 4-0. The Detroit Red Wings also defeated the New York Islanders 1-0 in their worst game, while the Tampa Bay Lightning and New Jersey Devils combined for 13 goals – an 8-5 victory for the Lightning, led by former Av goaltender Jonas Johansson.

The Utah Hockey Club, whom the Avalanche play for the first time on Thursday, was beaten 4-0 at home by the Ottawa Senators. The Winnipeg Jets remained undefeated and improved to 6-0-0 on the season after defeating the St. Louis Blues 3-2.

Colorado hockey now

What an upswing the Avalanche has experienced since Friday. After barely getting out of Ball Arena with a 4-3 OT win over Anaheim – despite a 49-19 win over the Ducks – Colorado won for the third straight time on Tuesday. This time a 3-2 triumph over Philipp Grubauer and the Seattle Kraken away in their first of three duels in the next two months.

Joel Kiviranta scored twice and Justus Annunen was back in the starting lineup, delivering another solid performance between the sticks for head coach Jared Bednar's club.

Around the NHL

Toronto: Toronto was one of two teams that started the day in back-to-back games. They were dominated by the Columbus Blue Jackets 6-2 at Nationwide Arena. And in the process, Max Pacioretty left the game with a lower-body injury. Just a brutal night, a day after the Tampa Bay Lightning lost.

Florida: The Panthers lost again. They were defeated by the Minnesota Wild 5-1. But earlier in the day, head coach and reigning Stanley Cup champion Paul Maurice signed a multi-year extension to remain the Panthers' head coach. He had a great quote after the game, courtesy of TSN's Chris Johnston:

“I'm interested in coaching the Florida Panthers as long as they have me because it's great to get on the ice,” Maurice said after the loss. “We are all artists here. Everyone has a job to do. I didn’t like my job tonight, but I’m still going to love it tomorrow.”