PITTSBURGH — Cale Makar didn’t buy the explanation from the officials.

The Avalanche defenseman briefly laid motionless on the ice Tuesday after a scary third-period collision with Penguins forward Jeff Carter, whose right shoulder popped Makar’s head near the Colorado net. Play continued with no penalty. A late whistle allowed him to get up and hobble back to the bench.

Jeff Carter catches Cale Makar high with blind side contact, not pretty#GoAvsGo | #LetsGoPens pic.twitter.com/VxvdfeHz90

— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights (@HockeyDaily365) February 8, 2023

Makar left the ice for a short time before returning to the game in a 2-1 overtime defeat.

“Pretty blindside,” Makar said from the visiting locker room at PPG Paints Arena. “The ref said apparently we ran into each other, but I don’t know how that’s possible. He was coming down the ice.”

Coach Jared Bednar, when asked about Carter’s hit, said: “He skated right through his head. That’s what I saw.”

Don’t confuse their frustration with blame. Colorado, in its first game back from the All-Star break, didn’t lose because of a missed call. The Avs dominated for the first 50-plus minutes of regulation — outshooting Pittsburgh 29-16 after two periods with a Nathan MacKinnon goal — before victory slipped away.

Pittsburgh tied the game with under 4 minutes left when starting goalie Pavel Francouz got out of position chasing a puck and got beat by forward Bryan Rust. In overtime, the Avs squandered a power-play chance, and a late shift change opened the door for Kris Letang’s game winner. Penguins goalie Casey DeSmith was also phenomenal in making 41 of 42 saves.

Yet there was still plenty of Avalanche optimism following the loss.

“I liked our game tonight,” Bednar said. “We checked hard. We were dangerous on the offensive side of it. I thought their goalie had a really good night, and or, we didn’t shoot the puck well. I felt like we missed the net on a few opportunities. Especially in overtime.”

MacKinnon added: “Everyone was playing hard. It wasn’t a lack of effort tonight, which is good. I thought overall we played a pretty good game.”

Defenseman Bowen Byram, after a three-month injury absence (lower body), made his return with 21:29 of ice time Tuesday night in Pittsburgh. But it looked shaky early in the first. Byram blocked a shot, went to the bench in pain and briefly headed into the tunnel. Concern relented moments later as Byram went back into the game. He was later credited with an assist on the MacKinnon goal.

“I thought (Byram) was good,” Bednar said. “When you take the time that he’s missed out of our lineup into it, I thought he was exceptional in all areas of the game.”

What’s next: The Avalanche (27-18-4) travel to face the Tampa Bay Lightning, 5 p.m. Thursday (ESPN) at Amalie Arena.