The Colorado Avalanche had a stat they could hang their hat on all season long: 45-0 when leading after two periods. Undefeated. Untouchable.

Make that 45-1.

Vegas stormed back from a 1-0 deficit in the third period, scoring three unanswered goals - including Jack Eichel's tying goal and two from Ivan Barbashev in a stunning 2:07 span - to shock Colorado 3-1 and take a commanding 2-0 series lead.

Folks, teams that go up 2-0 on the road in the conference finals are 20-1 all-time in NHL history. Twenty and one. And with Cale Makar out injured? This series might already be over.

"We believed the whole time," Eichel said after the game. "We knew if we kept pushing, we'd get our chances."

They got their chances, alright. The Golden Knights were relentless in the third period, outshooting Colorado 12-4 and completely taking over the game. Eichel's goal at 9:15 tied it. Then Barbashev went to work.

First goal: 11:22, beating Scott Wedgewood blocker side. Second goal: empty-netter at 18:57 to seal it. Two goals, 2:07 apart, and suddenly the Avalanche's season is on life support.

Without Makar - the reigning Norris Trophy winner and Colorado's best player - the Avalanche just don't have the horses to keep up with Vegas's depth. They're missing their quarterback on the power play, their best defensive player, their engine.

"It's tough without Cale, obviously," Colorado coach Jared Bednar admitted. "But we've got to find a way."

Good luck with that. The series shifts to Denver for Game 3, but the Golden Knights have all the momentum. They've won both games on the road. They've shown they can come back from deficits. And they've shown Colorado can't protect leads without their best player.