Well then. That was interesting
1. Nathan Mackinnon is a big game player. The bigger the stage the better he performs. I dont know his stat line in these outdoor games but he seems to always put on a show. He was fantastic last night and that goal he scored is classic Nate doing Nate things. Power, speed, skill all in one sequence.
2. Ryan Graves had a tremendous game. His work on that 5 on 3 was the turning point of the game. He seems to be getting better/more confident with every game. If he can just clear the puck he would be so much better. Its such an underrated skill to be able to get the puck out on the PK.
3. Those jerseys are gorgeous. Something about it under those lights last night really made it pop. In fact all of the Avs gear last night was nice. From hoodies to toques to Jareds jacket. Great stuff.
4. Power vs Power the Avs are better. I dont want to get ahead of myself or get cocky but the Avs are a different team when they are fully healthy especially on the back end. Granted I thought a few guys had a rough game but there were other factors that might have contributed to that... one being Jared Bednars super timeout.
5. Thought Grubauer looked good in the first and had some shakey moments when play resumed. You dont often see him checking behind him on unscreened shots from the top of the circle. I really like his calmness in net this year. He seems to have found this zen in net.
6. Didnt like Andre Burakovsky game last night or his last 5 games for that matter. I dont know why a guy with the second best release on this team refuses to use it at every chance? To start the year he was looking shot first and now he looks confused and unsure of himself. Its not his linemates as he played alot with Nate last night. I really thought he was set to bust out this year but im not sure anymore. Hes vital to this teams success so I hope he figures it out soon.
7. Devon Toews had one of his worst games as an Av the game before this and it really wasnt THAT bad just not good ... and he had his best game as an Av last night. Toews came as advertised and then some. This is like ordering a Big Mac meal and you get two orders of fries. I love that he thinks shot first. Great showing from him.
8. Petros "Oh Boy" was priceless. It has to be scary seeing a raging bull come down the wing like that. I actually didnt think he played that bad but you cant give Nathan that much open ice.
9. The reffing. Again, I often defend the refs and hardly ever blame the refs on the outcome of a game but what are we doing here? How does Bura get a penalty for high stick and Martinez not get one 3 seconds before? Because Saad didnt go down? Is that what these players need to resort to? Im not even saying it was bad for the Avs it was also bad for the Knights. Graves clearly shoots the puck out but none of the 4 saw that? The reffing has been noticeably bad this season and it needs to improve. The last thing I want is for Radulov to intimidate another ref into calling a non penalty in a crucial game...
10. Bowen looked like a rookie last night but only a few times not all night. He needs to be better and I suspect he will be fine next game.
