Avs Game 47 Grades - Scotch and Soderberg, Please

The Avalanche played a great road game before sitting back a bit too much in the third period, but were still able to hold off the Winnipeg Jets for an important 2-1 victory.

How did each player perform?  Let’s find out…

Tyson Barrie (B) – Like most of the team, Barrie was really good in the first two periods, and he was really active down low in the offensive zone.  He was fantastic on the shift that led to Soderberg’s goal, and had a beautiful rush up the ice in the third period that nearly led to a goal.

Francois Beauchemin (B) – I liked Beauchemin’s work on the penalty kill tonight, and he was out there a lot.  I think he played the entire penalty kill when Barrie was in the box late in the game.  One thing he’s struggled with lately has been getting his shots through to the net.  He’s been a nice mentor for Zadorov.

Chris Bigras (B) – Disappointing that his ice time got cut late in the game, but it’s hard not to be impressed with him.  He’s shown a willingness to take a hit to make a play on the breakout, and instead of dumping it up the boards, always looks to hit the center cutting up the middle.  Showed really nice offensive instincts in the second period joining the rush.

Blake Comeau (A-) – Tonight was one of Comeau’s better games at both ends.  It’s no surprise that he’s at his best when he shoots the puck, and tonight he had 5 shots on net.  He had the best possession numbers on the Avs, at 57%.

Matt Duchene (A) – Pound for pound, is there a stronger player on the puck than Duchene?  I think he drew two penalties tonight just with his power, including the one right before Soderberg’s goal.

Nick Holden (B) – Holden in front of the net in the offensive zone is something we don’t see a lot, but he showed great awareness on a delayed penalty by the Jets to get down low and cause problems before Soderberg’s goal.

Jarome Iginla (C) – His line got absolutely crushed at even strength, as they were all in the teens in terms of possession, but that release on his goal was something else.

Gabriel Landeskog (B+) – Landy has had a rough go of it lately, but I thought he was much more engaged tonight at both ends of the ice.  One of the few forwards to end with a positive possession night.

Nathan MacKinnon (C) – Make no mistake, MacKinnon has made significant strides defensively since coming into the league, but right now the offense isn’t there.  Too many shots from the outside from MacK.  He needs to be more aggressive in taking it to the net.

Andreas Martinsen (D) – He got rocked by Byfuglien on his first shift (clear interference, by the way) and looked rattled all night.  He struggled with the puck, which has been a theme lately, and had real issues getting the puck out.

Cody McLeod (B) – I’m not sure you’ll ever see Cody McLeod make a nicer pass than the one he made to Skille in the second period.  Unfortunately he couldn’t get the puck on his forehand, but it was a great pass.  He always gets up for games in his home province.

John Mitchell (B+) – Mitchell might have been the Avs best forward in the first period, and had more than a few chances in tight.  One of his better games in a while.

Zach Redmond (B-) – Redmond had a strong game up until some really ugly moments in the third, including some lazy giveaways with time and space.  I think he’s done enough to show he’s better than Bodnarchuk and Guenin, but I don’t think he’s better than either of the young guys, who deserve to stay in the lineup.

Jack Skille (B-) – He missed that chance on the pass by McLeod, but that line had a good night overall.

Carl Soderberg (A) – This guy is fantastic.  He has so much patience with the puck, and has really taken on the role of defensive center and excelled.  He was a monster on that final shift of the game to seal the win for the Avs.  What a pass to Iginla on the game winner.

Alex Tanguay (C+) – Tanguay didn’t taken an offensive zone penalty, which was nice, but he did have some lazy moments at the defensive blueline.

Chris Wagner (D) – As mentioned, this line did not have a good game, and they were stuck in their own end a lot.  Wagner did show some tenacity tonight and even went after Byfuglien at one point, but too much time spent in their own end.

Nikita Zadorov (B) – For two periods, Zadorov played Blake Wheeler about as well as you could expect him too, including shutting down a one on one rush for Wheeler in the second and not even allowing a shot attempt.  He had some struggles in the third, like most of the team, but Roy has shown a surprising amount of faith in him defensively.

Semyon Varlamov (A) – If people wanted to create a controversy with Pickard, Varly did his best to shut that down tonight.  He was dynamite all night, and only a perfect shot by Armia could beat him.

The Avs return home to face the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday night.  The game starts at 8 PM MST.