Philipp Grubauer’s brilliance buoys thrilling Avalanche comeback win

It was a pretty wild one in Sunrise, Florida tonight as the Avalanche kept their hot start going with a 5-4 overtime win against the Panthers.

Nathan MacKinnon won it in OT on a wrist shot that beat Sergei Bobrovsky. It was the only point Colorado’s top line scored all game.

That’s because Joonas Donskoi (1 g, 2 a) and Andre Burakovsky (2g, 1a) drove the bus offensively for the Avalanche as they overcame a 3-1 first period deficit.

Matt Nieto got in on the action with a second-period goal that pulled the game out of the mud and into a high-scoring affair as four goals were scored in a 2:58 span to put the game in the 4-4 tie that would last until MacKinnon’s game-winner.

TAKEAWAYS

• There have been three obvious too many men on the ice penalties in the last two games and none were called. The only reason it sticks with me is it is usually an automatic call that crews don’t miss often.
• The top line was an absolute horror show through almost the entirety of the game. Their best shift might have been their last of regulation as they held the puck into the zone and cycled quite a bit. Rantanen even got a shot off after they cleared the zone and he took advantage of tired legs. But that was easily the worst game I remember from this line in a very long time.
• And then MacKinnon ends it in overtime with a vintage snipe despite clearly being gassed at the end of a long shift. Hockey.
• MacKinnon’s winner moved him past Peter Forsberg for game-winning goals in an Avalanche sweater. We always knew his assault on the Avalanche record books was inevitable but for him to Forsberg in something certainly makes it a little more real.
• Overtime usage was pretty interesting as it didn’t look like Makar ever touched the ice and Landeskog and Rantanen each only saw one shift.
• The fourth line, however, was awesome again tonight. Matt Nieto got the goal that broke the dam in the second period and then made an outstanding individual effort late in the third period to steal the puck and beat Bobrovsky but banged the puck off the inside of the post. Heartbreak.
• The fourth line continues to be a difference-making group for the Avalanche. This is a major change from last year when it was an offensive black hole where you just hoped they didn’t do anything to hurt you. This group is actively playing a major role in them accumulating points in the standings.
• Interesting how the first half of the game was carried by Joonas Donskoi but the second half was marked by Andre Burakovsky continuing to shine. Two huge acquisitions over the summer, those guys are not taking any time at all to settle into their new roles.
• Burakovsky, especially, looks like a player transformed. I watched him in Washington and there were always flashes of talent. His combination of size, skating, and skill always kept Washington on the hook hoping for something more but it never showed consistently. It’s obviously very early but Colorado’s pro scouting staff has to be thrilled with their projections of Burakovsky in a bigger role. He has been nothing short of transformational in Colorado’s search for secondary scoring.
• Cale Makar was pretty terrible in all facets tonight. Eyes and shot metrics align on this one: Makar should probably just burn this game tape and move on. Too many basic mistakes and he looked like a fish out of water on Florida’s third goal.
• Ian Cole’s night, in numbers: 19:18 TOI, two assists, +4, two SOG, three blocked shots, 19 CF/9 CA, 11 SCF/4 SCA, 4 HDCF/ 2 HDCA. Wow.
• Ryan Graves just continues chugging along quietly. I think he has taken a real step forward from the bit player we saw at the end of last year who I felt was more lucky than good. Right now he is just playing some damn fine hockey.
• Saving the best for last here but Philipp Grubauer…wow. The first goal was pretty soft but after that, I didn’t really have a problem with the pucks that got by him. The real story of the night, however, was the pucks that didn’t slip past him. He made spectacular save after spectacular save in third period and again in overtime before the Avalanche eventually won it. He finished the game a .909 save percentage but was nothing short of fantastic. MacKinnon said after the game Grubauer was their best player.
• There was plenty of reason to wonder if Grubauer was ‘the man’ coming into this season but he seems to have picked up right where he left off at the end of last year. He hasn’t lost a regular season game in regulation since March 11, 2019, against the Carolina Hurricanes when he stopped two of 32 shots in a 3-0 Avalanche loss in Pepsi Center.
• There’s nothing cheap about what Grubauer has done this season. He’s locking games down in the third period and keeping teams off the scoresheet as the Avalanche continues to find ways to finish. He is playing with an extra level of confidence and if this is the guy Colorado gets most nights, he’s going to compete for a Vezina and the Avalanche will be very difficult to stop.

FANCY STATS