Lehkonen scores 2 goals and MacKinnon reaches 700 assists as Avalanche sink Sharks, 4-2

DENVER (AP) — Josh Manson scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period and the NHL-leading Colorado Avalanche beat the San Jose Sharks 4-2 in their final game before the Olympic break Wednesday night.

Artturi Lehkonen scored twice and Nathan MacKinnon had two assists for Colorado to reach another career milestone.

MacKinnon joined Joe Sakic as the only players in franchise history with 700 assists. Sakic, the team president, finished his career with 1,016.

Brock Nelson scored an empty-net goal, Valeri Nichushkin had three assists and Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 23 shots for the Avalanche.

Timothy Liljegren and Philippe Kurashev scored 2:51 apart early in the third to tie it for the Sharks. Yaroslav Askarov made 38 saves, but San Jose enters the three-week break on a four-game skid.

Manson broke the tie when his one-timer from the point got by a screened Askarov at 12:44. Askarov later went off for an extra skater, and Nelson scored his 29th goal at 18:43.

Colorado has stumbled since starting the season with just two regulation losses through the first 39 games. The Avs had gone 5-7-2 since Jan. 4 before beating San Jose and had their 11-point lead over Minnesota in the Central Division reduced to five.

Colorado, which has played three fewer games than the Wild, has 83 points heading into the Olympic break.

Lehkonen, who will play for Finland in Italy, gave the Avs a 1-0 lead early in the second after a battle in San Jose’s crease. The goal was upheld upon review, but his second and 19th of the season was a clean wrister from the right circle on MacKinnon's 700th assist.

Liljegren scored his first goal of the season 43 seconds into the third period and Kurashev tied it at 3:34 when he scored his seventh.

Sharks: Host the Calgary Flames on Feb. 26.

Avalanche: Host the Minnesota Wild on Feb. 26.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

San Jose Sharks center Zack Ostapchuk, left, checks Colorado Avalanche right wing Valeri Nichushkin in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

San Jose Sharks defenseman Dmitry Orlov, front, pursues the puck with Colorado Avalanche center Brock Nelson in the first period of an NHL hockey game, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Avalanche center Ross Colton, fornt, collects a loose puck as left wing Victor Olofsson trails in the first period of an NHL hockey game against the San Jose Sharks, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

San Jose Sharks left wing William Eklund, left, puts a shot on Colorado Avalanche goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood in the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Avalanche left wing Artturi Lehkonen, right, is congratulated after scoring a goal as he passes the team box in the second period of an NHL hockey game against the San Jose Sharks Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Firefighters entered a charred ferry in Philippine waters on Friday after a fire two nights earlier left five people dead and 84 missing and produced heat and smoke that prevented search and rescue efforts onboard.

Images released by the coast guard around midday showed three smaller boats near the MV June Aster, which appeared to have stopped emitting smoke as personnel walked on the outer portion of the ship.

Coast guard communications officer Joy Dianne Gumatay said Friday they had not received updates from the firefighting team about what was found inside, including whether there were additional fatalities.

The ferry sailed from the capital, Manila, on Wednesday evening and was around 7.4 kilometers (4.5 miles) off the village of Turda near its destination of Coron in Palawan province when the fire was reported.

Rescuers struggled to get inside the burning, smoking vessel Thursday to search for passengers who may been trapped. The efforts were halted overnight.

The cause of the fire has not been determined.

The coast guard and other vessels have rescued 43 people, some plucked from the dark waters as the ferry burned.

“The fire quickly spread. That’s when I dropped to the ground and my back was burned,” survivor Arnulfo Nokki Villanueva said in a video broadcast by News5, adding that he jumped from a window. “I wanted to get a life jacket but failed to get one because people were stepping on me. People were in panic.”

The coast guard, other government agencies, private volunteers and fishermen searched the nearby waters and coastal patrols checked for people who may have drifted to shore but no new survivors or fatalities were found.

According to the manifest, 134 people were onboard, 117 of them passengers and 17 crew. The 53-meter (174-foot) vessel had a capacity to carry 306 passengers and 27 crew.

Two passengers listed in the manifest reported to authorities that they failed to board, bringing the number of missing to 84, the coast guard said.

Two of the survivors were tourists from Chile, according to Rachel Conserman, a staffer of the ship’s owner Atienza Interisland Ferries Inc. They are recovering from injuries in a hospital in Coron, she said, adding that there no other foreigners known to have been on the ship.

The shipping company said in a statement it was assisting those who were on board and their families while coordinating with the coast guard and maritime officials to locate the missing passengers and determine the cause.

Coron is a popular tourist destination known for clear blue waters, limestone cliffs and rock formations.

Ferries are frequently used for transport in the Philippine archipelago. Sea accidents are not uncommon due to storms, badly maintained vessels, overcrowding and spotty enforcement of safety regulations, especially in remote provinces.

People prepare equipment to go out to sea from a pier in Turda, Palawan province, Philippines, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, days after ferry MV June Aster caught fire. (AP Photo/Harly Clark Cachero)

In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, aerial survey is being conducted around ferry MV June Aster off Palawan province, western Philippines, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, days after it caught fire. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP)

This photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard shows the ferry MV June Aster off Palawan province, western Philippines, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, days after it caught fire. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP)

In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, ferry MV June Aster smolders off Palawan province, western Philippines, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, days after it caught fire. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP)

In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, ferry MV June Aster smolders off Palawan province, western Philippines, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, days after it caught fire. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP)