Avs Game 51 Grades: Captain comes through

Nicolas Aube-Kubel – C+

A solid bounce back game after a two penalty evening against Boston. Played physical and made some smart plays with the puck.

Andre Burakovsky – B-

There was a lot to like about his game, even if it’s not all there. He was trying to skate with the puck, even if it was falling off his stick a good bit. He was trying to shoot, even if a lot of times he airmailed it over the net (including right before the first Detroit goal). I’ll take that if he’s involved, which it felt like he was.

J.T. Compher – D

Got moved up to the second line in favor of Newhook to keep Newhook at center. Got smoked all night long and only real chance he had was late on a 3 on 2 when his shot got blocked easily.

Pavel Francouz – B

The rebound control on the first Detroit goal was pretty ugly, kicking a shot right into the slot. Beyond that, he played well and had to glove some weird shots late in the third to calm things down a bit.

Samuel Girard – C

I hate the slide on the two on one because the way he slid took him completely out of the play. One of his better plays was in the third, recognizing a change and hitting Makar for a rush up the ice.

Darren Helm – A

A great game in his return to Detroit, picking up an assist on the dominant first shift. He had a nice chance in the second cutting to the middle, and made a great play defensively in the third to clear a puck in the slot.

Erik Johnson – B-

Some smart, simple plays most of the evening. Not quite sure what happened on the penalty kill with Detroit’s second goal, because one pass beat three Avs players, and EJ was a little too high, but at even strength, he was solid.

Jack Johnson – D

I liked his physical play, and he made a nice play in the defensive zone to outmuscle Bertuzzi and clear it for a two on one in the second period. The Avs spent pretty much the entire night defending with him out there, however, which tells you a good bit.

Tyson Jost – B-

Nice to see him bury one, as he sure needed it. Had another chance in the third and failed to corral a puck in the slot. Beat pretty cleanly on a few face-offs right before the second Detroit goal.

Nazem Kadri – C+

His best moments came in the times he got a chance to play with Rantanen and Landeskog, and that led to the game-winning goal. Didn’t love that second line most of the night, though.

Gabriel Landeskog – A

Set the tone from the start of the game to the end of it, with a dominant shift to start it and pure effort to end it with the empty netter. He just plain out skated three Red Wings players to create the empty netter. That’s a leader.

Kurtis MacDermid – C

Honestly, the penalty on him seemed pretty soft and based more on the size difference with him and the Red Wings player. He played fine for the most part and barely noticed him.

Cale Makar – B

A solid bounce back game, starting with breaking Zadina’s ankles on the first Avs goal. The top pair really carried the load from the get go and was the only pair to consistently control the play. The pinch on the first Red Wings goal kind of stung, however.

Ryan Murray – C

I like his willingness to jump into the play, but sometimes he does it a bit too much and gets caught up ice. Interested to see how this final stretch goes for Murray because him emerging and earning some trust would help with the depth on the blue line.

Alex Newhook – A-

Really loved his 200-foot play from the get-go. His effort in the defensive zone was noticeable all night, and he chased Redmond around one shift in the third period and didn’t let him get loose. Really happy that something came from his great look on the Jost goal, because it was a heads up play from him.

Valeri Nichushkin – B-

Are his hands just getting better with age? A few years ago you could have never seen him pulling off the goal he did against Detroit. Skate to stick, forehand to backhand, all with ease. That was a thing of beauty. Penalty late, but an alright night for him, and had a good chance on a two on one in the second too.

Logan O’Connor – B-

Well I guess he’s not scoring again, but at least nice to see him get on the scoresheet, even if it did come off a flub of a good chance. I actually like seeing him under 10 minutes of ES TOI, because he is better in spurts to use his speed.

Mikko Rantanen – B+

This Mikko at center thing is interesting because it feels like he struggles some nights, and then others is really solid. He didn’t do badly in the face-off circle and having Gabe to back him up helps. He was super competitive and angry late in the third, and that led to some solid defensive hockey from him in his end.

Devon Toews – A

Another game where he drives down low and picks up an assist with a cross-ice pass. Teams just can’t handle the movement of the top pair. Plus/minus is whatever as a stat, but at even strength, it felt like nothing but good things happened with him on the ice.