Wolves take 1-0 lead, special teams decide opener in Colorado

Colorado’s first test in the Western Conference Finals was not about five-on-five flow. It was about whether the Eagles could clean up the penalties that turned Game 1 into a Chicago special-teams showcase and handed the Wolves a 1-0 lead in the series.

Chicago beat Colorado 3-2 on Thursday night at Blue Federal Credit Union Arena, and every goal came with the man advantage. The Wolves went 3-for-5 on the power play, while Colorado’s two late power-play chances in the third period came too late to change the result. The loss gave the Eagles their first home defeat of the postseason and shifted the pressure squarely onto Saturday night’s Game 2 in Loveland, Colo.

Justin Robidas, Bradly Nadeau and Noel Gunler scored for Chicago, with Ryan Suzuki setting up two of the goals. Cayden Primeau turned aside 35 shots to preserve the road win, the Wolves’ sixth one-goal playoff victory of the spring. Gunler’s go-ahead goal with 7:06 left in the second period stood up as the difference, and Chicago protected it by denying Colorado the clean looks it needed down the stretch.

Colorado still found some offense through Alex Barré-Boulet and Tristen Nielsen, but Trent Miner could not match Primeau’s workload, stopping 15 shots in the opener. Jack Ahcan, back in the lineup after playing in Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Avalanche, assisted on both Eagles goals and gave Colorado a different look from the back end. The matchup that now looms largest is simple: Colorado’s penalty kill against Chicago’s puck movement and finish. If the Eagles keep giving the Wolves repeated power plays, the series can swing quickly.

The stakes are plain. Colorado was making its first-ever appearance in the Calder Cup conference finals after eliminating Coachella Valley three games to one, while Chicago arrived with a 5-1 all-time record in Western Conference Finals series and trips to the Calder Cup Finals in 2002, 2005, 2008, 2019 and 2022. The Wolves have already shown they know how to close one-goal games. Colorado has to prove it can slow that rhythm before the series tilts any further.