Fans Practice Pest Control

Colorado’s first goal Tuesday night in its 3-1 victory brought a flood of mousetraps from the stands at McNichols Arena in Denver.

It was an obvious answer to the practice of Florida Panthers fans throwing plastic rats on the ice every time their team scores at home.

Colorado management had a more conventional idea. The Avalanche saw to it that white pom-poms were left on every seat as a promotional item.

Missing Claude

As they prepared to announce the players, “We want Lemieux, we want Lemieux.”

Claude Lemieux, the object of their affection, was nowhere in sight, of course. The Colorado forward was suspended by the NHL for the first two games of the series for what the league determined was a cheap-shot hit of Detroit’s Kris Draper in the Western Conference finals.

Bargaining tool

Florida coach Doug MacLean said he never expected to make it to the NHL’s championship round in his first year.

“If I did, do you think I would have signed what I signed for?” he said.

MacLean, one of the NHL’s sharper wits, was asked about Florida’s excitement over the Panthers.

“My little guy wore his championship hat to school, but the teacher wouldn’t let him wear it,” MacLean said. “The teacher wound up wearing the hat. I hope she bumps up his grades a touch.”

Making his Marc

Asked about the following the Avalanche have in Colorado since their relocation from Quebec, coach Marc Crawford said his team was “turning on a lot of new fans.”

To which he added, “Hockey’s such a wonderful sport that you don’t have to know a lot about it - look at me.”

Rarefied air

Florida can join rare company by winning the Stanley Cup. One other team in sports has won a league championship in its third year as an expansion franchise - the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, who won in 1971 with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

The Avalanche also have a rare accomplishment to shoot for: One other sports team has won in its first year after relocation - the 1937 Washington Redskins, who had played in Boston the year before winning the NFL title.

Lucky one

Since the best-of-seven format began in the finals, teams winning Game 1 have gone on to capture the championship 45 of 57 times.