Brennan Vogt
The Colorado Avalanche took on their divison rival, the Nashville Predators tonight and looked great doing it. The Avalanche started strong out of the gate and Mikko Rantenan was able to break the power play dought for the team. Alex Newhook hooked up with Evan Rodrigues in what would become the game winning goal for the night. I have my player grades all here:
Val Nichushkin (A) Picked off a pass along the far side boards to get the puck and push it forward to Evan Rodrigues who then passed it across the slot to Alex Newhook for a goal. He did not get credit for the assist, but he made the play happen. Nichushkin had five shots on net and one assist in 20 minutes of play. Bednar claims he is looking rusty, but I think he is looking far from it.
Mikko Rantanen (A): Got a slashing penalty late in the first period that the Predators could not take advantage of. Rantanen took a pass from the blue line from Cale Makar in the left faceoff circle and absolutely rifled it to the top shelf giving the Avalanche a 1-0 lead. Rantanen only had two shots in 22 minutes but he only needed one to make it count tonight with the power play goal.f
Artturi Lehkonen (B): Had a great scoring chance while the Avalanche were shorthanded. He stole the puck behind the net and attempted a wraparound following up on his own rebound to no avail. Lehkonen was a plus-1 and had two shots on goal, but his game was more on the defensive side of the ice tonight.
Andrew Cogliano (B-): Got a tripping penalty in the second period that the Predators could not convert on. He looked like had an energy tonight that he hasn’t had in the last few games. He forechecked deep into the offensive zone and did it faster than he normally did. I liked his game tonight, he was all over the ice in a good way it looked like he couldn’t be stopped in his 14 minutes of play
J.T. Compher (B+): Was buzzin’ all night long. If he wasn’t hitting someone into the boards in the defensive zone, he was charging the net waiting for a pass. His best scoring chance came in the third as he carried the puck into the zone and then followed his own shot for the rebound. Compher has become the main faceoff man for the Avalanche, taking 29 tonight and winning 17 of them.
Logan O’Connor (B-): He showed his true strength on the penalty kill tonight, forcing a man down low and that allowed Lehkonen to attack and steal the puck. He played just over 15 minutes and had two shots on goal.
Evan Rodrigues (B): He sped through the neutral zone picking up a pass from Val Nichushkin and sent it across the slot to Alex Newhook for the goal. In only his second game back after injury, he was playing second-line minutes. Rodrigues did not show any rust at all tonight.
Ben Meyers (B): Is showing that he can get physical in the corners on defense. There were a few plays that he had to chase the puck and trap the man there waiting for help from the defense. Meyers played just over 14 minutes and is showing that he has a lot of confidence now. He is carrying the puck a lot more.
Alex Newhook (B+): is looking better on the wing. He is carrying the puck down the wall looking for a pass to the center, usually finding someone. Newhook drew a tripping penalty in the second period that the Avalanche converted on. Newhook took the pass. He may have only played about 15 minutes but they were a good 15 minutes. He had a goal and had a lot of chances for an assist tonight.
Dryden Hunt (C): He was a minus-1 in 6:13 of ice time and was not a standout in any way tonight.
Charles Hudon (C): He has shown that when he is out there on longer offensive possessions, that he can be a net front guy. Hudon is the one to drive the crease and plant himself there, refusing to be knocked over. I like the way he has been playing, the puck has just bounced his way. Sent to the Eagles after the game.
Jean-Luc Foudy (D): He played only about five minutes and was not a stand out. Compared to his game in St. Louis, the last two have been a struggle for him. Also sent to Eagles after game.
Cale Makar (B+): He got the puck at the blue line and sent it hard to Mikko Rantanen, who then threw it hard on net to make it 1-0. Makar played a team high 26 minutes and had the empty-net goal to wrap the game up.
Samuel Girard (B): Started the game playing the puck more than man. He was getting in between the body and the puck to separate the player. Compared to his play in the last game, this was like night and day. There was a huge improvement tonight as he was plus-1 and had 20:30 minutes of ice time.
Devon Toews (B): Started the game out as an aggressive player. He was pokechecking and then carrying the puck out of the zone a lot to help the offense in transitions. What can I say, Toews is a machine. You get the same game from his 25 or so minutes every night.
Erik Johnson (B-): Played a quiet but effective game tonight in his 19 minutes of ice time. He did not even have a shot on goal tonight.
Andreas Englund (B): Played a great 13 minutes of defense tonight. He was chipping pucks out of the zone and even tried to start a fight in the third period.
Brad Hunt (C): He did not really stand out tonight in 11 minutes on the ice. He did his job tonight and that was about it.
Alexandar Georgiev (A): He looked like he was in his comfort zone tonight saving 25 of 26 shots on net tonight. He was making stretches that he had not been making in the last couple of games, so maybe he had some coaching? Georgiev gave the Avalanche a great chance with the .962 save percentage.