DENVER – In his first start in a Colorado Avalanche uniform, Mackenzie Blackwood was, as the kids say, sick, while the team in front of him was just physically sick.

There’s some kind of bug going around the Avalanche locker room right now that Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar said is bothering quite a few people. It certainly looked that way for most of Saturday, but when your goalie stops everything, it doesn’t matter.

Well, pretty much everything. Blackwood was the star of the night, leading the Avalanche to a 5-2 victory over the Nashville Predators with 38 stops.

The fans at Ball Arena seemed excited to see what Blackwood had to offer and he put on a show. His first stop of the night was a shot from Steven Stamkos, who sneaked past the defense for a mini 2-on-1. Blackwood made the first stop and then stoned Filip Forsberg on the rebound. The fans really appreciated it and the goalkeeper gave them many more reasons to stand up.

Perhaps his best sequence came midway through the second period. With the game still scoreless, Jonathan Marchessault sneaked behind the Avalanche defense and made a breakaway. The 6ft 2in Blackwood gave him nothing and closed the door as the veteran striker tried to slide him between the goalkeeper’s legs. A few seconds later, Blackwood made another save and after he froze the puck, the crowd went wild.

Saves like this allowed the Avalanche to just hang around when they clearly weren’t at their best. And if you let a team hang around with that much high-end talent, they’re going to make you pay for it.

At 11:32 of the second, Ross Colton found a weak spot in the Nashville defense, something he has done a few times this season. Casey Mittelstadt found him and Colton buried his tenth goal of the season. Before the second period ended, Mikko Rantanen took the puck away from the Predators defenseman, allowing a mini break for Nathan MacKinnon, who shot it just under the crossbar to make it 2-0. Artturi Lehkonen added a goal in the third period that looked like it would tie the game, but the Predators added two goals late to make the game interesting. MacKinnon and Lehkonen’s empty net players ensured the final score for the home team.

After Lehkonen’s goal, the “Blackwood” chants began in the Ball Arena. There are still a few kinks to work out when it comes to the vocals, but it certainly didn’t take long for fans to fall in love with the new goalkeeper in town.

“You have to appreciate that,” Blackwood said of the postgame chants. “This feels great. Hopefully we can continue to play well in front of them.”

It’s possible that Alexandar Georgiev or Justus Annunen could have kept the Avalanche in this game with the way the team played most of the evening, but considering how they’ve performed for Colorado this season , that seems highly unlikely. That’s the difference the Avalanche are hoping Blackwood will make.

Very small sample size but so far so good.

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Avalanche 5, Predators 2

What happened: Blackwood closed the door until Colorado’s high-end talent kicked into gear.

What went well: The difference in talent between the two teams was obvious. Nashville created more chances but couldn’t finish most of the night. Meanwhile, it took a while for the Avalanche to get some good chances to score, and when they did, they made the Predators pay. Colton’s goal may have been the first real scoring opportunity from the gap the Avalanche had created that night. MacKinnon’s first goal was a perfect shot.

That’s what sets the Avalanche apart from many other teams.

What went wrong: Colorado has changed its power play units because things have been so bad lately. They actually only had one chance to showcase their new top team, which included Ross Colton and Casey Mittelstadt, but it went about as badly as you can imagine. A quick turnover after a faceoff win meant the Avs chased the entire power play as they couldn’t even line up in the zone.

Avalanche scorers: Colton (10), MacKinnon (12, 13), Lehkonen (9, 10)

Predators goal scorers: Stamkos (8), Evangelista (3)

Between the pipes: Mackenzie Blackwood was a brick wall in net, stopping 38 of the 40 shots he faced.

What’s next: Colorado goes on the road for a couple of games, starting with a game in Vancouver on Monday at 8:30 p.m