The goal, which meant 3–0, came in the second period and made the home crowd erupt. A noticeably overjoyed Landeskog was quickly embraced by his teammates.
I got a blackout, to be honest, says Landeskog after the match to TV channel TNT, where he is interviewed by expert commentator Henrik Lundqvist.
In the third period, the home team made it 4–0 through Samuel Girard – and an assist from the 33-year-old Swedish team captain and Brock Nelson. This was also the final result.
1,041 days
Gabriel Landeskog's last goal in the NHL came in the third Stanley Cup final against Tampa Bay on June 20, 2022. 1,041 days ago. Six days later, the Swede lifted the trophy as captain of his Colorado after the final win.
But since then, Landeskog has been away from the ice for almost three years due to lingering injuries that have forced him to undergo several operations. He made his comeback in the previous match against Dallas in the playoffs.
Before tonight's meeting, Colorado's coach Jared Bednar made sure the Swede got a bigger role by moving him up to the second line.
"There's only one"
This produced results immediately. Landeskog was more involved in the match and with seven minutes left of the second period, he received a pass from Brock Nelson in the slot in front of the goal and scored with a slapshot past Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger.
It was an incredible feeling, of course. I've been wondering how it would feel to score my first goal and to do it in front of our incredible home crowd is very special, says Landeskog to TNT.
His teammates are full of admiration for Landeskog's achievement in coming back after almost three years of injury absence.
There's only one "Gabe" Landeskog in the world, that kind of person and player. We've missed him, it's been a big void in the locker room and that he's back means a lot to us, says center Nathan MacKinnon.
With the win, the series now stands at 2–2, which will be decided in best of seven. The next match is played on Tuesday night in Dallas.
