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Avs/Golden Knights Grades - Yikes

AJ Haefele Avatar
October 28, 2017

The Colorado Avalanche headed west to take on the Vegas Golden Knights in an afternoon tilt on “Nevada Day”. The Golden Knights did all the celebrating in a 7-0 blowout. How did each of the players score?

Let’s find out…

Sven Andrighetto (D) – Andrighetto didn’t have a terrible game and his involvement in another controversial offside call was a source of frustration for him postgame but given the quality of his linemates, he needs to be playing significantly better.

Mark Barberio (C) – After arguably his best performance of the season, Barberio didn’t do anything that screamed: “I deserve to stay in the lineup” when Nikita Zadorov is inevitably inserted back into the gameplan, possibly as early as tomorrow.

Tyson Barrie (D) – Barrie’s point-streak came to an end but he didn’t have the same puck struggles like he did against Dallas. Fancy stats say he was on the ice for a lot of shots for both teams.

Chris Bigras (D) – It’s too bad it went this way for Bigras because he had some great moments in the first period. His part in the Lindberg goal is unforgivable, though, and his game went south in a hurry after that. It would not be a surprise to see him replaced in tomorrow’s lineup by Zadorov.

Gabriel Bourque (INC) – Left the game in the first with an upper-body injury after a collision with Brayden McNabb. Status remains unclear.

Blake Comeau (B) – Not quite the yeoman’s effort from earlier this week but this is the kind of solid performance the Avs hope to get from him every night. Solid at evens, was part of an excellent PK.

Matt Duchene (C-) – Fancy stats look solid but the eyes told the story of a player who wasn’t entirely engaged tonight. Several turnovers but some you can live with as he was trying to make something happen before the game spiraled out of control.

A.J. Greer (D) – Greer tried to pick multiple fights with people tonight and it looked like he finally found in a taker in Bellemare before they were broken up after Bellemare slipped on a stick. Has not remotely been the player the Avalanche hoped they were getting this season.

Erik Johnson (C) – Ate tons of minutes again and the fancy stats say play went the correct direction but isn’t doing nearly enough with his PP time. Avs had multiple PPs to get on the board first and push the game in the right direction and they failed miserably. EJ is a big part of that.

Alexander Kerfoot (D) – Kerfoot has struggled to flash as much since being moved down in the lineup and it’s obvious he needs to play with skill players to get the most out of him. Didn’t do much today before leaving after being on the end of a high hit from Brayden McNabb.

Gabriel Landeskog (C) – Said all the right things afterward and had another stat-stuffing night with 4 SOG, 4 hits, and 2 blocked shots. Wasn’t good enough on the PP and should be telling MacKinnon to leave the fighting to others, not encouraging him.

Anton Lindholm (C+) – His second consecutive strong effort, Lindholm appears to be finding a groove of sorts. Flashed his typically active and disruptive stick and even recorded a couple shots on goal. Was only a -2, which in this disaster of a game is actually a positive.

Nathan MacKinnon (F+) – This is going to be overly harsh but as the leader of his line and wearing an ‘A’ on his chest, more is expected of him than being just a guy. Another pedestrian performance but this time without the context of a dominant opposing line to prop him up. 1 shot on goal should be his average for a period, not his total for the game. Gave him the plus simply for standing up for Kerfoot in the third and being willing to throw down with a heavy hitter like McNabb.

Patrik Nemeth (C+) – I was tempted to give him a B but after a 7-0 slaughter, nobody on the defense is getting anything nice. Fancy stats were exceptional and he finished just a -1 while adding in 4 SOG. Looked healthy and was one of the very few not dark spots for the Avs today.

Matt Nieto (C) – Entirely forgettable follow-up to his hat trick against Dallas. Wasn’t good or bad. Simply existed.

Mikko Rantanen (D-) – Like MacKinnon, this team needs far too much from him for him to continue to be this forgettable. His play at even strength has been nothing short of disappointing and today was more of the same. Looks completely listless with and without the puck. Needs a major spark.

Carl Soderberg (C-) – Like the rest of his primary line, he was simply fine. Had flashes of both good and bad and his fancies fell just on the side of the negative so I gave him the minus.

Semyon Varlamov (D) – I feel bad giving Varlamov such a low grade because so many of the goals were tough-to-impossible situations for the goalie but you can’t surrender seven goals and get anything close to an acceptable grade.

Nail Yakupov (D) – Had a couple of scoring chances but obviously did not capitalize. His ghastly turnover created the game’s opening goal and firmly halted the momentum Colorado built up. The roller coaster ride continues for Yakupov.

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