Tyson Jost is stepping up in Nathan MacKinnon's absence, but he's far from satisfied

It was a glimpse into a future nobody wanted to see but one that might have needed to happen.

As the Colorado Avalanche, at times the NHL’s youngest team, were tasked with finding a way to steal two points from the San Jose Sharks while missing their top two scorers, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, it was the youngest forward on the roster who stepped up and kept the Avalanche in the playoff race.

Tyson Jost, just 19-years-old, is still 14 months from being able to celebrate with a postgame adult beverage but was willing to drink in the moment following his goal and assist to lead the Avalanche to a 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks.

“That was a big win for us,” Jost said. “It was two huge points up for grabs. It wasn’t the start we wanted and I don’t think we played a full sixty but you’ve got to find ways to win and we did that tonight. We’re happy with our group and we’re happy to grab those two points.”

The win moved the Avalanche just one point behind the Minnesota Wild, who beat the St. Louis Blues 6-2 earlier in the evening, for the second wild card spot. With the Avalanche scrambling to find offense in the wake of losing their top two scorers, Jost was put on a line with J.T. Compher and Nail Yakupov, a promotion for Yakupov from the fourth line.

Things started off very slowly for the Avalanche as a whole as they managed to escape the first period deadlocked at zero despite being outshot 14-3. Goaltender Jonathan Bernier stood tall and kept his team in it, hoping they would come out with a more spirited effort in the final 40 minutes. They rewarded that faith with a more complete final two periods as he took one more step to securing the starting job, maybe for the long-term.

“I think that’s just a big credit to Bernier,” Jost said, nodding to his goaltender two locker stalls down. “He’s been outstanding for us these last two months. He’s another guy who’s really stepped up when Varly got hurt there. We’re so confident in our goaltending. It’s pretty reassuring when you have him back in the pipes there. When you look back in our last 15 games here, we’re really good when we get the first goal so it was nice to do that and we weren’t playing catch up the whole game. Again, credit to Bernier. He held us in there for sure.”

While the story of Bernier and the goaltending dilemma continues to develop, tonight’s story was about Colorado’s future beginning to mature in the present. It’s something we’ve seen coming given his strong form recently but tonight wasn’t just about the process – tonight saw results.

“I think you look at my last ten games, I was pretty due for a goal,” Jost said, his boyish grin spreading across his face. “I had a lot of chances and I was getting pretty unlucky. I was trying to stay positive. It does get frustrating when you have all those chances and they’re not going in. I just stuck to the process and kept working hard. Good things were going to go in for me. I was happier tonight. Again, I’m not satisfied. There’s still a lot of season left and I still think I can bring more so I’m excited for what’s ahead.”

Challenged by head coach Jared Bednar after an awful first period, Jost took ownership of responding to the conversation with his perturbed coach and kickstarted his line in the second period.

“Our line, we didn’t like our start, we actually had a very poor start,” Jost admitted. “We had a little bit of talk with Bednar between intermission there. We needed a response. I was happy with how our line responded and our whole team so it was nice to grab those two points. We’re not satisfied here, we have a big road trip coming up and we need to get prepared for that.”

What then did Bednar say to Jost and his linemates that got them so fired up?

“Simply, that we need to be better,” Jost laughed. “We spent a lot of time in our own zone and it wasn’t the start we wanted. I think me and [Compher] have been playing together. We know we have a lot better and you could see it in those past games. Yeah, just simply said that we need to be better and I think we could see that, too. It was good to see that we could respond and kind of show him. I know I kind of took it to heart because that’s just the type of player I am. I want to make a difference every time I’m on the ice and I wasn’t doing that I’m glad he said something to us and it was good that we could respond.”

Jost’s aggressive forecheck early in the second period caused a turnover by San Jose as they were attempting to ignite their breakout but he took advantage of a blown tire by the Sharks’ defenseman and moved the puck to Compher, who outwaited the defense and hit Gabriel Bourque to give Colorado the 1-0 lead.

It was the kind of strong play Avalanche fans have expected from the heady Jost, who excels as a 200-foot player. Just two minutes later, Jost took a pass from Yakupov in the neutral zone and entered the offensive zone with speed and space. He kept the defense guessing long enough to get a clear shooting lane and he simply beat goaltender Martin Jones for what turned out to be the game-winning goal on a night the Avalanche were outshot 39-20.

Losing your two biggest producers is the kind of situation that typically spells the end for a team on the playoff bubble but the depth scoring, led by a player who was in the middle of his freshman season in college just one year ago, has kept them relevant and in the conversation.

“I think that’s kind of on the second, third, and fourth lines to step up and try to produce some offense,” Jost said. “When you lose two players like that, it’s a tough loss for sure. Those two players are two of the best in the NHL. It’s nice to see we’re getting different production from different lines so we’ve got to keep that rolling.”

There’s no overstating how important each game is as the Avalanche slide to the back half of their schedule. After tonight, they have just 30 games remaining to try to catch and separate from the pack they currently inhabit. The compression of the standings is something the team openly talks about as they attempt to chase the improbable result of turning a 48-point team into a playoff team just one season later.

“You how tight the standings are, I think there’s three or four teams tied with 60 points just outside the wild card spot,” Jost stated. “We knew what was up for grabs there and it was a huge two points for us. It wasn’t a secret in our locker room before the game and we talked about that. Our goal is to be in the playoffs and that’s what we’re shooting for and that was just a step for it. These were a huge two points. We’ve got to keep that rolling. This road trip is going to be huge for us. We need to learn how to win on the road for sure.”

Winning road games down the stretch is a classic mark of a mature team that understands how to close in difficult situations. Tonight, missing two of their best players against a likely playoff team, the Avalanche showed a maturity beyond their collective years.

It’s never a good thing to see top players hurt, but the MacKinnon injury has led to increased opportunities for a guy such as Jost and it may be a blessing in disguise should this breakout continue. He has scored seven of his 12 points this season in the last 12 games, a sign Colorado’s top forward prospect entering this season has finally found his game on the league’s largest stage.

Jost’s combination of maturity and accountability are rare for a 19-year-old, and this is a town that has seen a fair share of them in recent years as the Avalanche slowly embraced a full-blown youth movement.

Should Colorado continue to hang around in this playoff race, it’s will in large part be because of Jost’s success.