The Colorado Avalanche fought off elimination again, this time to the tune of a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Below are player grades.
Sven Andrighetto (A+) – HERO.
Mark Barberio (C) – Not quite the effort of the previous two games but he was still overall passable. He was a little shaky with the puck at times but he avoided disaster. That’s a victory.
Tyson Barrie (B-) – He was better tonight than we’ve seen him most of this series. He made a nice play to kickstart the rush on the game-winning goal. Not enough on the
Gabriel Bourque (C) – Minimal impact on this one. He wasn’t good or bad overall but I did like a shift later in the game when he was happy taking on several Nashville defenders on his own. That allowed Colorado’s top line to get on the ice with the puck still in the offensive zone. That was good. Thumbs up.
Blake Comeau (C-) – This line continues to eat big defensive minutes and it reflects in their numbers. They get beaten up at even strength basically every game this series. Colorado doesn’t have any better option so it’s not a criticism of the coaching staff. Just that it’s asking a lot from a limited group.
J.T. Compher (B) – Great job getting down the ice and the big key was he didn’t get too cute trying to make a play, he simply shot the puck and got the pass off the pads. Perfect.
Samuel Girard (C+) – Girard was really good at points tonight but the numbers came out a little brutal for him: 18-4 in favor of Nashville at ES with Girard on the ice. It was only 22-19 in CF thanks to a ton of blocked shots but there definitely was success against Girard. He stabilized well enough and was creative offensively, blistering a one-timer off the post in the first period.
Andrew Hammond (A+) – Truly special night from this guy. I’ve said a lot of not great things about his game this season but there’s no getting around the fact that he was downright special tonight. This was a performance we’ll remember for a long time.
Tyson Jost (C+) – I liked his game tonight. He was moving his feet and was involved in some good offensive chances. This was a small step forward for him in a series where he simply has been a non-factor.
Alexander Kerfoot (B-) – I wouldn’t mind seeing this guy get some more ice time. His game has risen with the intensity of the playoffs and he’s looked great at times. He wasn’t out there much tonight but I really did like his body of work. He even tried to shoot instead of pass on one rush. Good mentality.
Gabriel Landeskog (A) – Landeskog wasn’t quite the two-way force we’ve seen him be this series but his play on the game-tying goal was so good and smart. MacKinnon’s patience was great but Landeskog curling off his defender and finding the open space and getting his stick down on the pass was great awareness and hockey IQ.
Nathan MacKinnon (A+) – He was flying around all night and giving Nashville all they could handle. His patience on the goal was the stuff of legend. It takes a next-level player to do what he did in that situation. Incredible.
Patrik Nemeth (B) – He was really good tonight blocking shots and moving bodies and pucks in front of the net. Like Girard, his underlying numbers aren’t good but the eyes told the story of a player who went to battle tonight and showed well for his warrior clan.
Matt Nieto (C-) – Didn’t love the game from this line tonight. They got beat up a bit at evens and really their best shift came shortly before the game-tying goal late in the third period. It was a good energy shift but they spent a lot of time in their own end tonight.
Mikko Rantanen (B) – This is a tough one. He once again struggled with puck possession. His role on the power play was changed because of his issues. He doesn’t look quite right. And yet that pass to MacKinnon on the game-tying goal was outstanding vision and execution. Thumbs up all around.
Duncan Siemens (INC) – He played 4:11. That’s not even fair to try and grade.
Carl Soderberg (C-) – This is just a continuation of what I said for Comeau and Nieto. As a trio, they struggled. Individually, none stood out. I’m just glad he was healthy after the hit from Hartman in game four.
Colin Wilson (C) – He got moved around in the lineup a bit and responded by having another solid effort. He’s pretty consistent in what he does well even if the production is lacking.
Nikita Zadorov (C+) – Ahhh the nightly conundrum of what to do with Zadorov. I struggle more with his grades than anyone else because what he does well (hit people, intimidate and change how they attack with the puck) is consistently effective but his shot metrics are weak and his struggles (puck management and quick decisions) are glaring issues when they crop up. Tonight was more of his good than bad. I liked him overall but would say he was more steady than anything else. Given all the uneven levels of the defensemen around him, his reliability in this series has been a boon for the coaching staff.
0 Comments (7 conversations)
Cerveau
Maybe Bernier’s getting hurt was a blessing in disguise.
I like him… I just feel like he wasn’t fully healed from his previous concussion.
Colorado_Gary
Agreed. He was nowhere near the netminder he was during the 10-game winning streak. If Hammond had started the entire series I think the Avs are up 3-2. One thing I see from Hammond that illustrates his confidence is how he comes out towards the shooter and cuts down the angle. I think Bernier wasn’t 100%, was tentative, and played too close to the net.
Heavy Metal Avs Fan
I’m just glad I don’t have to make the grades but I have to say that I’m proud of this team regardless of individual performances. I do have to say Hammond was absolutely outstanding tonight though. What an amazing time to come together and keep things going.
SuperMario223
You go AJ. Now your grades make sense. Ok, Landy’s grade is too high (again). But who cares on a nigjt like this:) Go Avs, go AJ!
Landeskog got a big boost for the goal. He wasn’t nearly as good as in recent games overall. But that goal was everything.
Nels
These are so fun to read. Keep um comin AJ.
Dan G
Love the fact that you guys do these grades every game. Always some of the best post-game info. I think players need to be graded based on what’s asked of them, however. 4th line guys should get graded on what we want a fourth line to do, which is traditionally to eat up ice time, think defense first, and contribute to the PK. Borque did that. 11:59 TOI, 2:33 on the PK (which was 100% last night). Plus in your grade, you describe exactly what you want your fourth liner to do, get the top line out there in an offensive situation. To me, that’s better than a “C.”
They kind of are graded on their roles and who they are. Like a two-point game for Bourque is going to be an A no matter what else happens. That may not be true of a guy like Barrie or MacKinnon. And I use “C” as my baseline grade. Everyone starts at C and then moves from there. Bourque had a fine game, did what was asked of him, he gets the grade he started with because his overall impact on the game was minimal. There needs to be some sort of effort that separates to start moving grades from there. And when you play 12 minutes, you’re not on the fourth line anymore. And when there’s no discernible impact on the game beyond “nothing bad happened”, for me that isn’t good enough to justify a higher grade.
Dan G
Thanks for the reply, AJ. (really awesome you guys hop on here and respond) I get what you are saying and even though I don’t completely agree, I see your point. I just don’t think that a guy like Bourque in his role needs points in a game to get higher than your starting grade of a C. I also think the “nothing bad happened” evaluation of a player or line is fine. Sometimes that’s their job description: Allow the coach to roll 4 lines more often so he can pick his spots for his top 6 and bust ass on the PK.
I definitely see what you’re saying. I don’t want you to think I’m strictly talking points here though. There are a lot of things I consider, blocked shots, hits, anything that really has a tangible impact on the game. There wasn’t much of that from GB57 so I gave him my middle-of-the-road grade. That’s all 🙂
Z has been good this series so far, imho. Best +/- on the team too.
ljb4
How about a grade for Subban? I give him an A- for his impression of a giant catfish on the Landeskog goal and his pinch with less than two minutes left leaving his partner to defend a two-on-one.