Avalanche 3, Stars 2

Michael Kelly, The Sports Xchange

DENVER -- Matt Duchene scored two goals, Semyon Varlamov stopped 39 shots and the Colorado Avalanche continued their hot start with a 3-2 win over the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night.

Jan Hejda also scored and P.A. Parenteau had two assists for the Avalanche, who are 6-0 for the first time in franchise history.

Patrick Roy is the second coach to begin his career by winning his first six games. Mario Tremblay did it with Montreal in 1995-96, a team that Roy played for before being traded to the Avalanche later that season.

Colorado, which has missed the playoffs three of the past four seasons, is one of two unbeaten teams left in the league. San Jose is also 6-0 after beating St. Louis on Tuesday.

Rich Peverley and Cody Eakin scored for Dallas, which has dropped two straight. Dan Ellis finished with 23 saves.

Tuesday was the first time this season the Avalanche allowed more than one goal, but they still prevailed.

Duchene got the game-winner late in the second period when he beat Ellis with a wrister to make it 3-2.

Earlier in the period Eakin scored a power-play goal to tie it at 2-2. It was Eakin's first of the season.

The Stars pressed for the equalizer in the third period, outshooting the Avalanche 16-11 but couldn't get one past Varlamov. They pulled Ellis for an extra skater with 1:17 remaining but managed just two shots on goal.

Peverley opened the scoring when he got behind the Avalanche defense and beat Varlamov 4:18 into the game.

The score stayed that way until midway through the frame when Sergei Gonchar tried to hit Alex Chiasson with a pass in front of the Dallas net. The puck fluttered, and Duchene intercepted it and beat Ellis over the right shoulder to tie it with 8:17 left in the period.

Hejda gave Colorado a 2-1 lead when he shot a puck through traffic and past Ellis with seven seconds left in the first.

NOTES: Dallas placed G Kari Lehtonen (lower body) on injured reserve, retroactive to Saturday. ... Peverley's goal was the first Colorado allowed in the first period this season. ... Stars LW Lane McDermid played in his first game of the season Tuesday night. ... The Avalanche were the last NHL team to allow a power-play goal this season. They killed off 12 power plays in the first five games and one more Tuesday before Eakin scored with one second left in Nathan MacKinnon's hooking penalty in the second period.