COLORADO PUTS RAT PACK IN HOLE : COLORADO 3, FLORIDA 2.

Byline: Howard Ulman Associated Press

It takes more than a shower of rats and a torrent of shots to stop the Colorado Avalanche's roll toward the Stanley Cup.

Colorado recovered from a rare lapse in the first period and moved within a victory of a finals sweep with a 3-2 win over the Florida Panthers in Game 3 Saturday night.

``One of the reasons we've had success is (the players) haven't looked past a challenge,'' Colorado coach Marc Crawford said. ``The next challenge is to finish off the series.''

Fans welcoming the Panthers back after two losses in Denver went through their ritual of throwing artificial rodents onto the rink after Florida's two first-period goals.

And it was the Panthers' best period of the series, taking 14 straight shots at one point.

``In the first period, we played as well as we've played in the playoffs,'' Florida coach Doug MacLean said.

The Avalanche regained the momentum - and the lead - as Mike Keane and Joe Sakic scored in the first three minutes of the second period. Colorado never trailed again.

Colorado has outscored Florida 5-4 in the first period of the series, but 9-0 over the last two.

``We have a club with a lot of skill and at times it takes us a little time to warm up,'' said Claude Lemieux, who scored on his first shot after a two-game suspension. ``We felt if we stayed in a tight game in the first period in this building we'd be in good shape.''

Especially with goalie Patrick Roy, who lived up to his reputation as a magnificent playoff performer by stopping 32 of 34 shots.

``They got the lead in the second period and from there they went into a trap (defense),'' Florida defenseman Gord Murphy said. ``It was a trap for 25 minutes. It was frustrating. We couldn't get through and, when we did, Roy made the save.''

On Monday night, after Game 4, the signs of success on the Miami Arena ice may not be artificial rodents tossed in celebration. Instead, Avalanche players could be scurrying about with the Cup overhead.

Only one team - the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs - has come back from a 3-0 deficit in the Stanley Cup Finals since the best-of-seven format was adopted in 1939.

``We have to regroup. There's a long road ahead of us. We've got to keep believing,'' Florida's Dave Lowry said.

The last time two straight finals ended in sweeps was in 1982 and 1983 when the New York Islanders won two Cups.

Lemieux was the MVP of last year's finals, won by New Jersey in a sweep of Detroit. He gave the Avalanche a 1-0 lead Saturday night 2:44 into the game on his first shot since serving a suspension for a vicious hit on Detroit's Kris Draper.

But goals by Ray Sheppard and Rob Niedermayer 2:05 apart gave Florida its first lead since the opening period of Game 1 as it showed signs of renewed life after Thursday night's 8-1 embarrassment in Denver.

``We had to expect them to come out stronger,'' Roy said. ``Their fans were really cheering for them.''

That lead quickly disappeared as Keane scored 1:38 into the second period and Sakic connected at 3:00 to give the Avalanche a 3-2 lead. Then Roy stepped up.

``Patrick's seeing the puck very well right now,'' Crawford said. ``He's playing with a great deal of confidence. He's a real leader for us.''

Roy won two Stanley Cups with Montreal, which traded him to the Avalanche last Dec. 6.

SCHEDULE Colorado leads series, 3-0

Game 1: Colorado 3, Florida 1

Game 2: Colorado 8, Florida 1

Game 3: Colorado 3, Florida 2

Game 4: Monday at Florida, 5 p.m., ESPN

Game 5x: Thursday at Colorado, ESPN

Game 6x: Saturday at Florida, 5 p.m., ESPN

Game 7x: June 17 at Colorado, 5 p.m., ESPN

x-if necessary

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Box

PHOTO (color) Florida coach Doug MacLean looks as deje cted as the plastic rats on the ice after the loss to Colorado.

Associated Press

Box: Schedule (see text)