Avs-Jets Grades - Overtime Thriller

The Colorado Avalanche took it to overtime with the Winnipeg Jets but ultimately prevailed, 3-2. How did each of that players grade out?

Let’s take a look!

Mark Barberio (B) – This will be a common theme throughout as the Avs were dominated in possession. The numbers weren’t pretty but Barberio was again solid in his decision-making and the things that get him in trouble were kept to a minimum. If he keeps this up, he could be an attractive piece at the trade deadline for someone.

Gabriel Bourque (D+) – Not a fan of Bourque’s limited game and he got crushed at even strength. He booted several pucks in the offensive zone and was where scoring chances went to die. He did have a nice blocked shot as the result of a good, aggressive read in the defensive zone.

Blake Comeau (C+) – He and his linemates weren’t great at even strength but Comeau was exceptional at times on the penalty kill. He was aggressive in attacking the pucks up high and he frequently forced the puck wide to the perimeter where the Jets were plenty happy to tee up one-timers that didn’t amount to much.

Samuel Girard (C-) – There were a lot of positives from his play tonight as he continues to find his confidence in firing stretch passes. He got run over at even strength though and his decision late in overtime to retreat into his own zone where he promptly turned the puck over was nearly a disaster. 

A.J. Greer (C) – This is where I remind everyone that a C grade isn’t a bad thing – it’s middle of the road and that’s how I would describe Greer’s game. There was some good, a little bad, but not very much of any of it because of his limited ice time. Hopefully, his role grows a bit the longer he stays.

Erik Johnson (A) – To hell with everything else that happened for EJ tonight. He got a clean breakaway minutes after turning the puck over and giving up a breakaway that could have ended the game and he buried it, beating Connor Hellebuyck on a night where he was spectacular. Getting the job done is all that mattered there.

Tyson Jost (C) – I, along with everyone else paying attention to the first period, loved what Jost brought early on. He was flying all over the ice and creating scoring chances. His forecheck was ferocious and his board work was excellent. The failure to capitalize was a stark reminder of how far he has to go in order to work his way up the lineup to play with more skilled players. Still, being on the ice for one scoring chance for and 12 against is, uh, well, really bad.

Alexander Kerfoot (C+) – This wasn’t a very memorable effort from Kerfoot. It wasn’t bad, either, as he made his usual assortment of intelligent passes and he had a shot on a tic-tac-toe passing play that would have been a beautiful goal. But Hellebuyck shut the door and life is cruel sometimes. One of the few Avs to do well in the fancy stats category but his barely seeing the ice in the third when Winnipeg was pushing hardest probably had something to do with that.

Gabriel Landeskog (C) – His linemates were spectacular while he was more of a spectator. He got run over at even strength and he was far too careless with the puck in his own zone. He wasn’t terrible tonight, it only felt that way in relation to his linemates.

Anton Lindholm (D) – There were some moments from Lindholm where he excelled playing next to Girard. They both recovered well from mistakes made by one of them but if those mistakes weren’t made in the first place, there would be nothing to recover from, ya dig? He continues to put up ghastly fancy stats. We might be seeing a rotation with Mironov until one of them separates.

Nathan MacKinnon (A+) – His play on the second Avalanche goal was insane. He made three-fifths of an NHL defense look confused, incompetent, and downright overmatched as he worked them all and drew them into his aura. Then he dished it to Rantanen, who finished it off with a nice one-timer. Two more points for MacKinnon tonight have him just outside the top two in the scoring race.

Patrik Nemeth (C+) – While the shots favored the Jets while Nemeth was on the ice, the scoring chances actually favored Colorado. That’s good news. He is playing with a ton of confidence and was robbed of another goal tonight as he aggressively jumped into the play offensively.

Matt Nieto (C) – Like Comeau, I’m happy to overlook the even strength struggles because of solid play on the penalty kill. Nieto’s active stick was important in slowing the quick perimeter puck movements with the man advantage. He was okay tonight.

Mikko Rantanen (A+) – Three points tonight was a great way to rebound from the end of his eight-game point streak over the weekend. He played with a ton of confidence and was a difference-maker out there.

Carl Soderberg (C) – Like his linemates, they struggled at even strength but they each had a role on the penalty kill that held the Jets to just one goal on four opportunities.

Semyon Varlamov (O) – The O is for “Oh no, here we go again.” Varlamov was on his way to an A+ start as he was tracking the puck extremely well and looked unbeatable en route to stopping 21 shots through 1+ period of play. His injury could end up being a season-changing development for the Avalanche if it is serious. Jon Bernier (let’s give him a B for the huge stop on the breakaway in OT) played well in relief.

Colin Wilson (D+) – Ahhhh Colin Wilson. The nightly conundrum. There are some good plays from him every night and he and Jost worked well at times but getting blitzed at even strength like the Avs did when Wilson was on the ice is bad news bears no matter how you try to sell it.

Nail Yakupov (B) – He was fine. He took some shots on goal, there was a little offense, and he didn’t have to play much of any defense tonight.

Nikita Zadorov (C+) – There were some moments of greatness and his numbers against Winnipeg’s top competition was actually admirable. He did a few nice things on the puck, laid a big hit or two, and generally did his thing tonight. He also got walked once going for a big hit on Laine and had to be bailed out by his teammates. It’s something that tends to happen a bit too often for a player who seems to be coming into his own.

Jared Bednar (B) – He kept his team even-keeled when Varlamov mysteriously departed the game in a crucial moment. His postgame presser was frustrating but his work on the ice, which is what matters, was pretty solid. His creative overtime usage shows his growing trust with some of the team’s young stars and his willingness to win or lose with those kids is one of the most encouraging things we’ve seen from JB this season.

The Avalanche return to action this Thursday as the Columbus Blue Jackets make their annual visit to the Pepsi Center.