DENVER, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- Joe Sakic returned to the lineup Tuesday night and helped the Colorado Avalanche to a 4-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers, who became the latest team unable to contain the line of Alex Tanguay, Peter Forsberg and Milan Hejduk.
Sakic sat out 15 games due to a broken right foot, but Colorado did not miss a beat without its long-time captain, going 12-1-1-1. In his first game since Jan. 20, Sakic picked up an assist on Steven Reinprecht's goal that capped the scoring late in the second period.
But it was the Tanguay-Forsberg-Hejduk combination that continued to flourish. Tanguay scored twice, Forsberg collected three more assists and Hejduk set up a power-play goal by defenseman Rob Blake, giving the trio 52 points in the last 10 games.
The Avalanche climbed past idle St. Louis into fourth place in the Western Conference.
Mike York had a goal and an assist for the Oilers, whose winless streak reached seven games (0-4-1-2). They lead Los Angeles by just five points for the final playoff spot in the West.
