Avs Game 22 Grades: Back it up

Pierre-Edouard Bellemare – D

Made a great play on the penalty kill in overtime, and some big blocks there, but he is just a black hole offensively right now, with another great chance in the slot that he missed by about five feet.

Andre Burakovsky – F

Great play on the Saad goal, on a play that should have been much bigger where the game was at, but two massive mistakes cost the team. Looked like miscommunication between he and Girard on the first Ducks goal, but the penalty late in the offensive zone, with a lead, is unacceptable. I can’t believe he touched the ice after that.

Joonas Donskoi – D

Really quiet game overall, and ended up not playing a ton. Even when he’s not getting a ton of ice time, he at least seems to be a part of one or two scoring chances. Tonight, nothing, not even attempting a shot on net.

Samuel Girard – C+

This may seem harsh, but this really was a tale of two games for Girard. For the first half, he was a bit of a mess, with puck mistakes, icings, and playing a role in each of the Ducks first two goals. After that, he got angry, and really turn the tide for the Avs with a great shift that drew a penalty. Picked up two assists and was great the second half, but like a lot of the team, wasn’t good enough early.

Ryan Graves – C+

Graves was fine in the defensive zone, blocking a good amount of shots and doing well on his own. When he gets the puck, things still aren’t all the way there, and his shot selection is not very good, but I’ll take the solid defense.

Tyson Jost – C

Poor Jost had two great chances to bury this game late, and couldn’t do it, with Miller making great saves on both his chances. That’s kind of the season it’s been for Jost so far, getting chances and not burying them, while doing a lot of things right.

Nazem Kadri – D

Wasn’t a big fan of Kadri tonight, and it’s obvious he doesn’t really fit well at even strength with Rantanen and Landeskog as a tandem. Lost the first face-off goal too cleanly, which we’re not used to seeing, and didn’t seem to have much going with the puck overall.

Gabriel Landeskog – C+

Not a good first period for Landeskog, but liked his game afterwards, and he was the one guy who was using physical play to get things going for himself. He came out hitting in the second period and that kind of helped get him into the game.

Jacob MacDonald – D+

Tonight was a little bit of a struggle for him, and got caught doing not a whole lot on the first Terry goal. Still, the fact that they are getting 18+ minutes out of him at even strength and being competitive is remarkable.

Jayson Megna – C

Color me surprised that not only did they play Megna at center, but they tried to use him to win key face-offs. It didn’t work, but I didn’t think he played that bad, considering how much they used him. Could have very easily scored a big goal late but Miller made a ridiculous save on him.

Hunter Miska – F

It’s not his fault he’s been thrust into this situation, but it’s clear he’s in a little over his head. The second teams start to pressure him, things fall apart and his lack of structure becomes clear. The third goal by the Ducks is a goal that just shouldn’t happen. At this point, the Avs have to make finding a backup goalie a priority.

Valeri Nichushkin – A

Another fantastic game from Nichushkin, who was going all game long, and from being in the arena, the Ducks were sick of him as well. Getzlaf, in particular, was not happy with Nuke, and that’s when you know he’s on his game.

Logan O’Connor – A

How do you take him out of the lineup at all, healthy or not? He should be a regular and has done everything you could possibly ask of him to do. Another goal that proved to be incredibly important in the game overall.

Mikko Rantanen – C

Much like Girard, a tale of two games, where he was non-existent in the first half, and a monster in the second half. In the third period, he looked like engaged, unstoppable Mikko but to take a penalty in overtime is just unfortunate. Need a full game of awesome Mikko.

Dan Renouf – C

Felt like there was a bit of a step back, not surprising given he was given a bigger role. He managed to fall over untouched a few times, and the speed of everything looked to catch him a bit, but nothing too glaring.

Brandon Saad – C+

Another net front goal, which is becoming standard issue for him, but relatively quiet night overall beyond that, and the staff didn’t really use him that much.

Kiefer Sherwood – C-

Had some troubles clearing the puck out of his own end in the first period, but after that recovered pretty well and the fourth line had some chances. I really like his release, and he put a nice shot on Miller in the first.

Conor Timmins – C+

There were still some flubs, including one turnover that led to the Avs getting stuck in their own end a good bit, but he has looked much more confident the last two games overall, and playing more aggressively.

Devon Toews – B

His work in the neutral zone is just incredible, as he reads plays so well and doesn’t give the other team anything. Great work to knock down a dump in and turn it the other way on O’Connor’s goal. Another heavy workload game.