Avalanche-Canucks player grades: MacK back on attack

The Colorado Avalanche just keeps kind of hanging around in the Western Conference playoff race. Just when you want to start counting them out, the Avs come up with a win. That was the case Tuesday night in their 3-1 win over Vancouver.

How did the players fare individually? Let’s break it all down:

Gabe Landeskog (B) – If only Blake Comeau could have hit an open net, the captain would have had a great third-period assist. Unfortunately, the play ended as just a great pass and nothing more. I thought he was good with the puck for the most part, especially in possession plays in the corners.

Mikko Rantanen (B+) – After a really bad outing in Calgary, No. 96 played harder and more effectively overall. He scored the only goal of the first 40 minutes and had a couple of other dangerous chances.

Nathan MacKinnon (A+) – He had six shots on net in the game’s first 47 minutes, and assisted on Rantanen’s first-period marker. Then, he got the big-time goal on the rush down the other end of the ice after Vancouver’s Jake Virtanen hit the post. That was kind of a big sequence in the game. His empty-netter sealed it.

Nikita Zadorov (C+) – Another couple of penalties, giving him five separate minors in the last two games. He was back in a regular rotation again, though, and did pick up a third-period assist on the MacKinnon goal. He was part of a defensive unit caught flat-footed right before that goal, but hey…baby steps.

Duncan Siemens (B+) – Another good game for the kid! It’s still a very small sample size, yes, but Siemens has arguably been the Avs’ best defenseman in the last week. He played a quietly effective game, just keeping things simple and using his size to his advantage. He might have been a little out of position on Vancouver’s late goal, but so was the goalie.

Alexander Kerfoot (C) – Shoooot the puck. Number 13 had another one of those “Why didn’t he shoot the damn thing” moments in the first period. It’s just his nature to look pass first, though. I thought he played pretty well defensively, though, and is getting a little better on faceoffs, even if the numbers don’t always show it.

Colin Wilson (C+) – Nothing particularly of note offensively, but he was pretty good defensively, blocking three shots and generally staying in his lane so to speak.

J.T. Compher (C+) – He was absolutely robbed of a goal by an arm save by Jacob Markstrom. He took some hard hits in this one, but gave out a few too. It would be nice to see him a little more involved offensively again, but as long as he’s doing what he usually does defensively, he’s good to have in your lineup.

Patrik Nemeth (B-) – There were a couple of ghastly puck-management sequences, but he worked hard as usual, finishing with five blocked shots. He also played 3:53 of short-handed time to lead the team.

Sam Girard (B) – He played 18:27, and registered zeros in many categories. But that’s OK for a defenseman. I thought he was just fine with the puck, moving it out with proficiency and just making the simple plays.

Carl Soderberg (C) – It feels like he’s kind of wearing down a little. Maybe that’s off the mark, but there just hasn’t been that extra zest to his game that there was much of the first half. The offense just hasn’t been there of late. He did win 7-of-12 draws though.

Blake Comeau (C) – You always appreciate Comeau’s effort level, but the offense has been sporadic at best for him for a while now. He had an open-net chance in the third, but missed. Like the rest of his line of late, he’s just been kind of mucking along.

Matt Nieto (C) – See previous two entries.

Tyson Barrie (B) – He played a team-high 24:30 for the Avs, and got an assist, his sixth point in two games against the Canucks. Yeah, there were a couple of scary moments with the puck in his own end, but that happens with No. 4 sometimes doesn’t it?

David Warsofsky (B) – I had no problem whatsoever with the journeyman’s game. He played 12 perfectly respectable minutes, blocking three shots and finishing plus-1. He has done a nice job since coming up from San Antonio in tough circumstances.

Gabriel Bourque (B) – I liked his game tonight, as limited as it was. He played a solid fourth-liner kind of game, with a good stick in the neutral zone and some tough, physical play on the puck. For a guy who no one could pick out of a lineup for the first half, he’s been one of the better forwards in the second half really.

Dominic Toninato (C) – Another game where he was just kind of there. Nothing too memorable in any aspect. But at least he wasn’t memorable in a bad way.

Tyson Jost (C+) – Nothing on the score sheet, but I thought he skated well and was engaged when he was out there. It sure would be nice to get more offense out of him, because it would relieve the pressure on the top line. On nights like tonight, though, it wasn’t a factor.

Semyon Varlamov (A-) – A strong effort from Varly, who has been the definition of up-and-down of late. He came close to the shutout, but his defense was a little slow reacting to the puck there on that goal. He made a couple of big saves early to give his team a chance to do what it hasn’t done much of late, which is play with a lead.