The Colorado Avalanche lost 4-2 to the Dallas Stars in their second preseason game. Here are the highlights of the game.

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Nikolai Kovalenko

This was the player we were hoping to see when Kovalenko ended his KHL career and came across the pond last season. He used his size effectively in all phases of the game as he was disruptive on the forecheck and strong defensively on the wall.

The real highlight of his game was his playmaking. An excellent pass from behind the net to Ivan Ivan led to an easy goal, but the pass was an absolute beauty as Kovalenko fired it through traffic and across the goal crease.

The other play that stood out was him deflecting a puck in the offensive zone, passing Thomas Harley and throwing a pass in front of the net that led to a goal by Parker Kelly. It was a one-man show from Kovalenko until the goal.

All preseason caveats apply, but this was a young player fighting for a job and taking his chance. He wasn’t great in the first preseason game, but he was in this one.

Sam Malinski

That was an eye-catcher from Malinski. He was the Avs’ best defender on the ice throughout the game. He excelled in all three zones, from putting his stick in the path of a backdoor feed that would have resulted in a Dallas goal, to making plays in the neutral zone and countless plays in the offensive zone that made you think brought: “That’s an Avs defender.”

His size was an issue a few times and that will always be an issue for him, but when it came to reading the game and playing with confidence, Malinski was everything you could ask for.

Although he once made a mistake and played on his own blueline, which ultimately resulted in the game-winning goal coming from his foot, Malinski had a game that served as a shot across the bow for Oliver Kylington and Erik Brannstrom. This is what being a puck-moving defenseman looks like in this system.

Ivan Ivan

This guy just won’t stop making a positive impression. He’s not ready for the show yet, but his hockey IQ keeps skyrocketing for me. He knows how to play his role in the game situation. He’s not a one-trick pony. He just “gets it.”

He’s an all-rounder who won’t wow you with a single skill, but he combines solid skating, decent size and physicality, good defensive play and a bit of offensive flair in an intriguing combination.

He was called for several penalties that were questionable to me and drew the penalty that led to his own power play goal.

I want him to continue to work on his overall game, especially as a center, but he keeps showing something. I don’t think he poses a real threat to make the Opening Night roster, but if he continues to play at a high level he will be in line for a call-up at some point.

Parker Kelly

After an unforgettable first few days in camp, the Avs wanted to see this version of Kelly when they signed him to a two-year deal. He’s fighting to make the team and has performed well in his natural position at left wing after the team gave him looks at center during training camp.

He lost coverage in front of his goal on one of Dallas’ goals, but that’s not why you play him in the middle, you know? However, he was physical and performed quite well overall, and the Avs should feel encouraged that Kelly should push Joel Kiviranta for one of the deep wing jobs.

His skating and physicality are the main selling points here. He also scored a nice goal and later had another great chance to score through Kovalenko, but couldn’t finish the ball. For him it was a first-class excursion.

Duds

The lineups

Dallas has the majority of the NHL roster with many of its big hitters on ice. Colorado’s only NHL regulars were Alexandar Georgiev, who only played half the game, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Kelly and Calvin de Haan, I guess?

There are a few fighting for regular jobs, like Malinski, Kovalenko and Chris Wagner, but this has been a lopsided affair from the start. The Avs guys deserve a lot of credit for playing such a competitive game despite the talent imbalance, but it’s one of those things about the preseason that honestly drives me crazy.

This isn’t really anyone’s fault, but rather a result of the imbalance of the preseason schedule. Dallas was in the fourth game, Colorado was in the second. Of course, Dallas relied heavily on veterans while the Avs played less well. There’s nothing you can do here, I just cry.

Jacob MacDonald

I’m not sure if it’s because he’s spent so much time playing forward in recent years or if he’s hitting the wall, but MacDonald has looked terrible in two preseason games.

He was always a chaos monster, but his playful drive typically followed suit. You can live with poor defense defense when a guy is moving his pucks from defense to offense at a high rate of speed, but that wasn’t the case in the two games.

MacDonald was everywhere with his readings, his execution and his offense. The positive aspects of his game were not yet apparent. It’s a disappointment and I hope this is just a case of a guy getting used to being back in Colorado as opposed to the utter disaster that San Jose has experienced the last two years.

Thoughts by Eric Lacroix