Avs Game 49 Grades: Just good enough

Darcy Kuemper – C+

Sometimes in a game there isn’t really a great save out there for a goalie to make and today definitely counts as that type of game. Kuemper got beaten twice by great Thompson shots and one that wasn’t nearly as good. He was aces in the third period of a tied game and the guys in front of him did just enough. It worked.

Nicolas Aube-Kubel – B-

I like most of NAK’s games these days if I’m being honest. I like his physicality and I like that he tries to make plays with the puck instead of turning his brain off and doing the simplest thing imaginable. It’s not always a banger of a game, but I liked NAK again.

Andre Burakovsky – B-

The most frustrating parts of Burakovsky’s game are when he’s too soft and cute with the puck and I didn’t see tons of that today. I see a guy working hard and engaged in the game who is just not getting a puck to drop for him despite getting good looks every outing. He was close again today but he’s now 15 straight games without a goal.

J.T. Compher – A

This is a guy whose game I loved. In fact, I turned to Rudo during the third period and remarked that if the Avs found a way to lose to Buffalo, it was because it is the kind of game where J.T. Compher is their best player. He was all over the place in this one and while his goal was plenty lucky, he earned the bounce. Great game.

Samuel Girard – B-

Girard had a game that has become pretty typical of him. If he’s not on his A-game, his pairing goes as Jack Johnson does. Girard was solid again today and could have had an assist with some better luck on the finishing but also could have had a goal or two against him because of opportunities left in his own zone. A little iffy but I liked his work on offense.

Darren Helm – C

So, I’m always in an odd spot on grading depth guys who don’t play much. The reality here is that Helm at 5v5 got dominated in shot metrics, but his best play came on the PK where he nearly found his way to a SHG. He didn’t, though, so I’m balancing it all out with a middle-of-the-road grade.

Erik Johnson – C

If there’s one thing that’s really developed this year, it’s the three people who rotate writing grades (Evan, Jesse, myself) all seem to have a different overall view of Erik Johnson and our grading follows suit. EJ was just okay today. There wasn’t a lot that pushed or pulled me in any direction and the numbers aren’t overwhelming either.

Jack Johnson – D

The numbers are decent but Jack Johnson’s fingerprints were all over this in a bad way. What’s he doing on the first Buffalo goal? He just floats into no-man’s land and never comes out of it. He might still be there! Then he should’ve been penalized right before the game-winning goal because he smoked Rasmus Dahlin without either of them touching the puck and he got him with a high stick. Got lucky, but it wasn’t good.

Tyson Jost – C+

Jost actually popped a little on offense today. You could tell he was feeling it a bit but as has become custom for his career, left one good scoring chance on the ice.

Nazem Kadri – B+

Really liked Kadri today. The effort was there, he was playing with discipline and he was Colorado’s best forward for small stretches. Great shooting on his goal. Could have had at least one more with better finish. Strong offering.

Gabriel Landeskog – C+

Did not love Landeskog’s game. You can always tell when he’s having an off-day because he makes mental errors in the little aspects of the game. Watch him totally lose Thompson on Buffalo’s second goal. He normally is right on that play but he was cheating a little towards the blue line and it burned him. Not terrible, but not what we’ve come to expect.

Nathan MacKinnon – B

MacKinnon looked like he was going to roar like the Daddy Lion today. Scored Colorado’s first goal and then should have had a second goal but the whistle was blown while the puck was uncovered and MacKinnon lost out. Then he just seemed to gear down and drift through the rest of the game.

Cale Makar – D

Got an assist on Colorado’s first goal and mentally seemed to pack it up from there. Didn’t do anything on the power play, where he has suddenly become averse to shooting at all, and his muffin giveaway up the middle of the ice that led to the third Buffalo goal is the kind of stuff that gets lesser players benched. A rarity from Makar, but wow was that not a quality showing.

Ryan Murray – C+

I think I’m starting to believe Murray is my blindspot because nearly every game he plays, I think he hasn’t been nearly as bad as the people in my orbit say him to be. I don’t think he’s secretly playing great or anything, but again today I thought he was just fine and avoided the big ugly mistake he has been too prone to this season. He was the only Avs defenseman not to yield a high-danger chance today.

Alex Newhook – B

So, here’s another tough grade. He got crushed in shot metrics. Crushed. But he also played multiple shifts on multiple lines, and the majority of the damage came next to LOC and Helm. On the other chances he got, Newhook was solid and then scored the game-winning goal in transition. It was a great finish. I loved his compete level. I thought he played with jump. He just needs to start finding a way to elevate those around him a little.

Valeri Nichushkin – A

I loved this guy’s game today. Loved it. He was working his tail off and produced results. Kadri’s goal was created entirely out of thin air by Nichushkin simply putting in the work. He stick checked a puck to the wall, chased it down, won the battle for it, then made a pass that got a fortunate tip and landed on Kadri’s stick ready to shoot. Great work overall.

Logan O’Connor – D

I know the points have largely dried up with LOC but he’s had some strong efforts recently. Today wasn’t one of them. Uncharacteristic softness in his game all over the ice, starting with the puck along the wall that helped create Buffalo’s first goal. That’s an easy reverse and he just…gives it away. LOC is so much better than what we saw today but it has to be a concern he got caved in by a Casey Mittelstadt line.

Mikko Rantanen – B-

Loved his game late, wasn’t as big of a fan early. I thought he got more engaged in the game as the water got muddier. When it became obvious Buffalo wasn’t just going to go away this afternoon, Rantanen upped his play a decent bit. The most casual empty-net goal. Patrik Stefan tried that once.

Devon Toews – B-

It’s not normal I don’t think much about Toews during a game because he’s usually on the ice 25 minutes a night and doing impactful things all over the place. I thought today was a much quieter effort overall. You can talk me into the Makar muffin being just as much on Toews because he thought Toews was ready for that pass. Would make more sense than Makar making the kind of mistake we basically never see from him.