Avalanche's Valeri Nichushkin: Scores hat trick

Nichushkin scored three goals on five shots in Sunday's 5-1 Game 4 win over the Jets.

Nichushkin deposited two power-play goals in the second period to give the Avalanche a 4-1 lead going into the third period. He added an empty-net goal late in the third frame for the hat trick, and Sunday's trio of tallies brings Nichushkin up to six goals in the playoffs. The 29-year-old winger added two hits, three blocked shots, five shots on net and a plus-2 rating in 22:28 of ice time. Including the regular season, Nichushkin is on a six-game point streak, scoring eight goals and one assist over that span.