SEATTLE — The first round turned after four periods.

The Kraken outscored the Avalanche 5-1 during that stretch to start the series, endangering the heavy favorites in the series. Since then, Colorado has outscored Seattle 9-4 in five periods to take a 2-1 series lead.

Here are three keys to the Avs keeping momentum in Game 4 on Monday (8 p.m. MT, TBS) at Climate Pledge Arena.

1. Keep rolling with the punches, J.T. Compher. The Avalanche’s second-line center does everything that feels important to this series right now. He’s on the top power play unit; Colorado is 0 for 7 through three games. He kills penalties; down 1-0 in Game 3, he scored a crucial short-handed goal. He leads the team in faceoffs taken; the Avs have scored three important goals in the last two games off draws. And Compher is involved in all that while dealing with a revolving door of linemates. The latest twist was Matt Nieto joining him on the second line with Valeri Nichushkin out. With no timetable for Nichushkin (personal reasons) to return, Compher needs to stay consistent with whatever cards he’s dealt. He (and everyone else) played poorly in Game 1, the only loss of the series.

2. Bo Byram and Cale Makar? Sign everyone up. Colorado’s two most offensively skilled defensemen have been paired together since Game 2, and they have electrifying potential together. Jared Bednar’s adjustment has required the lefty shot Devon Toews to play on his off-hand side. No issues with that so far. Toews has looked solid on the second pairing, and Byram has possibly been the Avalanche’s most consistent blueliner the whole series, impacting play at both ends of the ice. When Makar was on the ice in Game 3 (23:23), the Avs registered 21 shot attempts to Seattle’s five. The two young dynamos have the opportunity to control play against Seattle’s defensemen, who are solid but nowhere near the Makar (and potentially the Byram) stratosphere.

3. Philipp Grubauer is bending. Break him. Colorado finally got to its former goalie, who loves playing at Ball Arena but apparently not in Seattle. At Climate Pledge Arena in the regular season season, he had an .886 save percentage and 3.06 goals allowed per game. His road splits were considerably better (.904 SV%, 2.59 GAA). The Kraken, by the way, are now 5-12-3 this season on home ice vs. playoff teams, including the Game 3 loss. An Avalanche team that has won 12 straight away from home should be licking its chops. As for Grubauer, the last two times he allowed five or more goals in a game, he followed it up by conceding four more goals the next game. Seattle has been sufficient at clogging lanes and blocking shots, but if Colorado gets enough bodies in front of Grubauer and pucks on net, the floodgates can open in Game 4.

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