Post Game Avs/Rangers: What The Players Did

At the end of the 1^st period in MSG, who here were surprised the Avalanche were in a tie game with the New York Rangers? We were. After being outshot 16-6 in the opening frame, the Avs found a way to beat the potential Vezina Trophy winner, Henrik Lundqvist, once on those 6 shots. And what a goal it was. Matt Hunwick showed off is fantastic skating ability, and lightning speed, along with a good set of mitts on him as he snuck the puck past the Rangers star netminder for his 3^rd goal of the season. Random stat: Erik Johnson, who has played 3 times as many games than Hunwick, has 4 goals.

But the difference in this game wasn’t Hunwick’s goal, a Landeskog tip, or a Stastny empty netter; it was, once again, the solid and spectacular goaltending of Semyon Varlamov. He kept the Avs in the game when they didn’t deserve to be, yet again, and he should get most of the credit for the huge win. In fact, Colorado goalies should get most of the credit for the Avs picking up 5 of a possible six points.

Players of the Game:

Gabriel Landeskog: Landeskog had another solid game. He scored his 21^st of the year, on just his only shot on goal. He played 19:01 and was a physical force. He was great on the backcheck, and was instrumental on the penalty kill. This guy just reeks of Calder.

Ryan Wilson: Wilson had 2 assists in last night’s victory, but he deserves to be a Player of the Game for reasons other than points. He played a solid defensive game and was not afraid to jump up into the rush. He has shown some great offensive potential over the last few games, especially in the OT against New Jersey.

Semyon Varlamov: As previously noted, Varlamov stole another game for the Avalanche. A great game from the young goaltender. The trade with Washington doesn’t hurt AS much anymore!

Jan Hejda: Hejda had another quiet game for the Avs going about his business. But he was good tonight in 23 minutes of action, as he has been for most games this season. You don’t notice him much out there, but that just means he isn’t screwing up.

The Doghouse:

Nobody stood out tonight with an awful game. But there were a few players that did not play as well as they should have:

Matt Hunwick: He scored a great goal in the 1^st, and made some good plays, but the rest of the game for him was bad. He was often caught standing around, letting Rangers players skate circles around him for lots of shots on goal. #22 needs to be better in his own end.

Erik Johnson: See above (ix-nay the nice goal)

Milan Hejduk: still not enough from our captain. His game wasn’t horrible, but he could have contributed more.

Avaholics 3 Stars:

1.      Semyon Varlamov

2.      Gabriel Landeskog

3.      Jan Hejda