Philipp Grubauer of Rosenheim, Germany was named the National Hockey League first star of the week on Monday for the week from March 8-14 according to nhl.com. In four games, Grubauer posted a record of three wins, one loss, one shutout, a goals-against average of 1.24, and a save percentage of .932.
Grubauer struggled in his first game of the week. He gave up three goals on only 14 shots in a 3-2 Avalanche loss to the Arizona Coyotes on March 8. However, after the one-goal defeat, Grubauer simply sizzled. He rebounded against the Coyotes on Wednesday, March 10 by only giving up one goal on 14 shots in a 2-1 Avalanche win. Grubauer then made 18 saves in a 2-0 Avalanche shutout win over the Los Angeles Kings on March 12, and 27 saves on 28 shots in a 4-1 Avalanche win over the Kings on March 14.
For the season, Grubauer now has a record of 15 wins and seven losses with a goals-against average of 1.91, and a save percentage of .923. A workhorse, he also leads the National Hockey League in minutes played this season with 1320. Grubauer is also tied for the NHL lead in shutouts with four. He is tied alongside Marc Andre Fleury of the Vegas Golden Knights.
Grubauer is also third in the NHL in goals-against average and fourth in save percentage. The only goaltenders with a better save percentage than Grubauer are Fleury (.936), Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning (.935), and Semyon Varlamov of the New York Islanders (.929). While the only two goaltenders with a better goals-against average than Grubauer are Fleury (1.77) and Vasilevskiy (1.85).
After the two wins over the Kings, the Avalanche have moved six points up on Los Angeles for the final playoff spot in the West Divison. They have a record of 16 wins, eight regulation losses, and two losses in extra time for 34 points. Colorado is in third place in the West Division, and five points back of the first-place Vegas Golden Knights.
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