Avs-Blackhawks player grades: Ugly but effective

Andrew Agozzino (C+) –I mean no offense to him when I say this but I just don’t seem to ever notice Agozzino doing anything. He barely plays and essentially nothing happens during his shifts so it could absolutely be worse. It could be better, too, of course, but it could be worse. The stat sheet said he had three shots on goal so I’m giving the plus for that.

Sven Andrighetto (B) – I thought Sven was one of the few Avs with juice tonight. He hit the post early on and wasn’t shy about firing pucks to the net. He was moving his feet well and when he combines his aggressive shooter’s mentality with his speed he presents a dangerous threat to opposing teams. He was that guy tonight.

Tyson Barrie (D+) – Hard to give anyone on Colorado’s defense a very good grade tonight. They simply survived more than anything else. Barrie did snag an assist on the only Avalanche goal and the PP again cashed in on a five on three opportunity. Those are huge and the Avs were 2/2 over the weekend in those situations.

Gabriel Bourque (C-) – For the second straight game, Bourque showed a little good as he drew a penalty and I thought was okay over tonight. The minus is because even in his limited minutes, the Avs trailed in scoring chances 3-1. That can’t happen when you don’t even play six minutes of even strength time.

Derick Brassard (F) – I thought the penalty he was called for was a bit weak and was more of an optics call than a legitimate board but it ended up being the PP Chicago scored on. Beyond that, I thought Brassard looked completely overmatched tonight. He wasn’t good in either game this weekend.

Matt Calvert (C+) –Calvert was okay tonight. I thought he had his moments and he almost found himself on a breakaway but it sure looked like his stick was held in the process. There was a ton of obstruction in tonight’s game that went uncalled on both teams. It wasn’t a playoff game so much as it was mud wrestling.

Ian Cole (D+) – Cole got away with a blatant trip on Toews early in the game and made a couple of iffy plays with the puck. He was okay defensively, too, and I liked his physicality again tonight. I just can’t give anybody on defense great grades when they give up 40 shots in regulation, 32 at even strength.

J.T. Compher (B-) – I really liked Compher’s game tonight as a whole. He had a couple of good offensive chances and he definitely still had his legs throughout the game. He was solid in a game where not many were, especially offensively in creating for others.

Samuel Girard (C) – Girard gets my highest grade of the defenders because I thought he was still moving well and trying to make something happen offensively. I was oh so hopeful he’d do something spectacular early in overtime when he started out with possession but it just wasn’t meant to be tonight.

Ryan Graves (INC) – There just can’t be much of a point to this. The forwards got run into the ground for four minutes of Graves? I just don’t know about this.

Philipp Grubauer (A+) –40 saves and another spectacular overall outing. He got the Avs the extra point with 14 saves in the third period when Colorado was outshot 15-3. He made several spectacular saves, especially on deflections. If the Avs make the postseason, tonight’s yeoman’s effort from Grubi will standout.

Erik Johnson (D) – Of all the D, I noticed EJ the least tonight. That’s both good and bad, I think. I felt like Colorado’s breakout was badly lacking in the third tonight and the defense’s inability to generate pressure exiting the zone was a big reason why. That’s not necessarily all on EJ, just something I thought was weak as a group.

Tyson Jost (C+) – He had three of Colorado’s seven shots on goals in the first period and came out flying. He sustained his pace throughout and was one of Colorado’s better forwards but his level dipped just enough after the first period that I wasn’t comfortable giving him much higher of a grade than this. He needs to start beating goalies on actual shots to get to that next level offensively.

Alexander Kerfoot (C) – I’m not totally sure how to feel about Kerfoot’s game. The goal was a deflection off his leg so he really just gets credit for standing there and getting hit but I did like some of the offense he helped generate. He also fumbled some pucks and turned them over defensively, so that’s also a problem. He’s really been riding the wave lately of good, bad, and productive. He’s back near 40 points for the second straight season.

Nathan MacKinnon (D) – He played a ton. He’s clearly worn down. He has limited help, at least compared to what he’s been accustomed to most of this season. Defensively he was a mess. He turned pucks over at an alarming rate and successfully defended himself when he allowed himself to be pinned by two players in overtime, creating a chance the other way. He also got baited and burned by Duncan Keith in OT and there’s no excusing the poor work there. He also had four shots on goal, breaking Joe Sakic’s single-season record for shots in a season. He notched an assist, his only point in the last four games despite putting 23 shots on goal in that time. That overtime shift was just a bummer to watch.

Patrik Nemeth (D+) – Somehow, Nemeth managed to be just negative one in the Corsi department tonight. That’s kind of spectacular given how the third period went. He really just continues to hum along quietly without much notice but he is nowhere near the disaster the Avs have had on their third pairing in recent years. He’s just fine for this given role.

Carl Soderberg (D) – What a weird stat line for Soderberg to have a totally empty box score except…six hits? What? The scorer’s were sure this was 34, right? Soderberg has been a lot of things in his Colorado tenure but overly physical isn’t one of them. He understands how to use his impressive size but he’s never been a physicall dominant player. Tonight, he threw his weight around plenty but…that…was about it? The Avs could really use some offense from him. Outside of his ENG in Dallas, he has just one assist in his last nine games. The Avs need more from Carl.

Colin Wilson (C) – I thought Wilson’s best work was in the neutral zone. He’s always been a bit of a bloodhound when it comes hunting for pucks and his puck retrieval work, especially along the walls, separates him as an effective muck-and-grind type of player. He’s an interesting guy in the scheme of things. I enjoy watching him when he’s solid, as he was tonight.

Nikita Zadorov (D+) – This dude somehow broke even in Corsi! That’s incredible given how the game shifted as it went on. I didn’t notice any major puck gaffes like there were yesterday in Denver. I’ve enjoyed his late-season burst and I can’t help but wonder if he’s starting to work his way towards a real paycheck, not just whatever the sides agree to when he inevitably heads to arbitation. His four hits led the defense. Neat.