Avs-Flames Grades: Burned out

The Colorado Avalanche got beat up in Calgary by the Flames in a 5-1 tuning.

Player grades below!

Tyson Barrie (C+) – This is a tough grade to give out. He was one of the few Avs who played hard through the end of the game and he was constantly jumping into the offense in the third period to try and get his team on the comeback trail. That’s all good, but despite the overall effort, he just wasn’t very effective in doing so, making it kind of a tough grade. I’m erring on the side of positive with this one simply because so few Avs players seemed to care at all beyond the second period.

Gabriel Bourque (C) – Bourque hardly played at all and it just didn’t seem to matter much when he did. Another quiet game for him.

Blake Comeau (B-) – I really liked this whole line today. None of the guys particularly stood out from each other but they played well as a unit and provided Colorado with some of its only extended zone time in the second half of the game. They did everything but finish.

J.T. Compher (C) – His demotion was well-earned but he hasn’t responded the way you expected from a guy as competitive as Compher. He was just okay today, doing nothing to show the coaching staff he is deserving of getting his minutes back.

Samuel Girard (C+) – One of the few Avs to produce positive shot metrics today, Girard played an important role in the team’s limited creation of offense. They didn’t have a lot but Girard was usually involved when it was there. A bright spot, though a limited one.

Tyson Jost (C-) – After some really strong performances, Jost got more minutes and more responsibility…and didn’t respond very well to any of it. He wasn’t good at all.

Alexander Kerfoot (D) – There was a spark early on but he got worse as the game went on, culminating in his lazy turnover that helped lead to Calgary’s fourth goal, which was essentially the nail in the coffin. He still isn’t very good in his own zone, as evidenced by his late read and scrambling to block the shot on Calgary’s fourth goal. He really had a bad shift there, eh?

Gabriel Landeskog (F) – This hasn’t been a strong stretch for him overall and this afternoon’s putrid performance was a continuation of that. It’s striking how unremarkable the Avalanche are when its top line isn’t clicking anymore.

Nathan MacKinnon (D) – He got the goal from center ice which was more about the universe giving the Avs one back after that absurd goal off the back wall and off Calvin Pickard’s back and into the net against the Flames last year. Like his linemates, he got beat up and was mostly a non-factor. He hit the post on a great power play that resulted in no goals and served as a turning point in the game when it was just 2-1.

Patrik Nemeth (C-) – He was okay. This is honestly the kind of Nemeth game I’d prefer to see most of the time. Shot metrics aren’t terrible, no egregious errors, not hurting the team with terrible puck management, and he’s not playing a major role in goals against. That’s fine for me.

Matt Nieto (B-) – This guy is an enigma. He’s thisclose to being a really, really good NHL player. Just a little more consistency, a little more finishing ability and he could be a legitimate 30-40 point player who drops in 15+ goals per season. He’s not quite there, though, and that’s the razor-thin margin in talent in the NHL. He played well today but that lack of finish kept him from the scoreboard.

Mikko Rantanen (F) – Really frustrating game from him. He didn’t appear interested in the slightest on backchecking on Calgary’s second goal, he was slipping and sliding around on the ice like Bambi, and he was awful in contested puck situations. A ghost-like performance would have been preferred over his detrimental play.

Duncan Siemens (B) – This was sitting near the ‘A’ range again after another strong performance but a sloppy third period brought it down a bit. Happy for Siemens on a personal level that he got his first NHL point. He’s always been a great interview for me and honest about his struggles in his career. It certainly didn’t come in the situation he would’ve liked but nobody can take it away from him now. He played another solid game overall and has played his way into being a storyline to follow the next couple of weeks.

Carl Soderberg (B-) – He was quality today but struggled to finish off chances. He even had a bit of a physical edge to him and that always raises him a notch or two. He’s dangerous when he plays with a nasty attitude.

Dominic Toninato (C) – I didn’t really notice him much out there per usual but his number one feather in his cap is bad things don’t happen to the Avs when he’s on the ice. Either he’s a lucky charm or he’s doing SOMETHING right. I have a hard time justifying giving him a grade outside of the ‘C’ range simply because of his virtual non-impact on the game.

Semyon Varlamov (D) – The Avalanche didn’t need a heroic Varlamov like they did in Edmonton. They just needed solid and reliable and they didn’t get anywhere close to that.

David Warsofsky (D) – The shine came off Warsofsky pretty quickly in this game. He wasn’t effective throughout and the Flames were able to generate a number of scoring chances with him on the ice. The Avalanche weren’t dangerous with him out there and given his reputation as a guy who can move the puck, it’s disappointing when he isn’t threatening in any way on offense.

Colin Wilson (C-) – Some people are driven crazy by this guy and I totally understand the feeling. Games like today where he isn’t particularly effective make him seem useless but he’s the kind of guy the Avalanche haven’t had much of in recent years. When he’s not playing well, he very rarely plays really poorly and hurts his team. Today was on the bad side but it wasn’t terrible for Wilson.

Nikita Zadorov (F) – What in the world was that? After getting benched and not appearing in the third period or overtime against Edmonton, it was fair to expect Zadorov to come out with a little fire. Bednar put him on the ice right away and Zadorov made him regret it as he failed to handle a puck again and it turned into a Calgary goal just 18 seconds in. Follow that up with more poor puck play and multiple penalties, one of which resulted in another goal against, and you have a recipe for disaster. He’s been really strong the majority of the last 40 or so games but he’s been a downright calamity the last two outings.

Jared Bednar (INC) – I don’t really know what to give Bednar on this one. He tried to boost Z’s confidence by putting him out there right away and it blew up in his face. He kept going to Z and it kept blowing up. He finally benched him but the damage was done at that point. Beyond that, his team has not played a good game in several weeks now. Some of that is certainly player related and missing MacKinnon and then Johnson was a cruel plot twist from the universe. Regardless, this team just has not responded to much of anything right now and to me, it looks like a young team that’s simply out of gas. Guys like Kerfoot and Jost are playing longer seasons than they ever have before and the reliance on limited upside talent in guys like Nieto, Comeau, Bourque, and Toninato means there’s only so much one can expect from this group offensively. The real concern is the once-dominant top line now looks totally out of sync and each player is having a separate set of struggles. I have no idea how Bednar juggles all of that right now and I don’t feel comfortable trying to give him a grade on it.