from Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post,

On his home ice, surrounded by thousands of Detroit fans that covered the Pepsi Center in a sea of red, young Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon dropped his gloves and fought for the franchise's lost glory.

Less than a minute after the opening faceoff, there was MacKinnon taking punches in the face from Red Wings defenseman Jonathan Ericsson. Ericsson had run MacKinnon roughshod into the boards, and the 19-year-old Colorado forward was not about to be bullied.

"It was in the heat of the moment, for sure," MacKinnon told me Thursday, admitting that he decided on fisticuffs to settle the dispute. "Right now, I don't feel like fighting anybody. But, it was a big game, and I asked him to fight. He said yes. It was fun."

MacKinnon did what hockey players do: He traded fists to prove his manhood. MacKinnon battled in the grand tradition of the blood feud between the Avalanche and Red Wings....

As the arena shook with an approving roar from a crowd with a lust for blood, here's what struck me: Is a teenager really the toughest man that Roy has got to stand up for team pride? And is MacKinnon really the best shot the Avalanche has of overcoming a wretched start to kick in the back door to the playoffs?

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Watch the fight below...