(Photo credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images)

Matt Boldy had two empty-net goals and added two assists, Joel Eriksson Ek also scored twice and the Minnesota Wild beat the Colorado Avalanche 5-2 in Denver on Thursday night.

Filip Gustavsson made 44 saves for Minnesota, which has won six in a row and tightened the race in the Central Division. Mats Zuccarello also scored, and Kirill Kaprizov had two assists.

Colorado leads the NHL with 85 points and the Wild have 80, tied for second most in the league.

Martin Necas had two goals, Nathan MacKinnon contributed two assists and Mackenzie Blackwood turned away 31 shots for the Avalanche, who were playing the second game of a back-to-back after the three-week Olympic break.

Eriksson Ek's first goal of the game, at 7:48 of the second period, gave Minnesota a 1-0 edge. The Avalanche answered when MacKinnon left a drop pass for Necas as they skated into the Wild zone, and Necas beat Gustavsson with a wrister at 13:30.

Colorado took three minor penalties in a span of 53 seconds, giving Minnesota an extended 5-on-3 power play late in the second period. The Avalanche killed off the first two penalties before Eriksson Ek's shot went off the inside of Blackwood's right skate and in at 17:37 for a 2-1 lead.

The Avalanche came out strong at the start of the third period, outshooting the Wild 12-5 in the first 10 minutes of the frame, though Gustavsson stopped them all. Necas had a point-blank chance that Gustavsson snagged with his glove.

Colorado went on the power play at 12:36 but couldn't score, but Zuccarello made it a two-goal game when his pass to the crease went off the skate of Avalanche defenseman Sam Malinksi and by Blackwood at 15:08.

Colorado got another power play with 3:48 remaining and Blackwood came off to give the Avalanche a 6-on-4. Boldy sealed it with a short-handed, empty-net goal at 16:38.

Gustavsson left the game with just over a minute remaining after vomiting in his crease. Necas scored on the first shot on Jesper Wallstedt at 19:03, but Boldy restored the three-goal margin 25 seconds later.

Wallstedt wound up saving one of the two shots he faced.

--Field Level Media