Duchene to Stay; O’Reilly Likely

In a move that surprised nobody, the Colorado Avalanche have decided to keep Matt Duchene for the whole year, opting not to send him back to his junior squad, the Brampton Battalion, according to The Denver Post.

The Avs have not officially made the announcement yet but we can expect one soon since the cut-off for the 9 game rookie tryout ends on Wednesday.

This move was obvious for several reasons. Most importantly, he has earned his spot on the roster. His effort, puck presence, and responsible play away from the puck has earned him the 2nd line center position. The stats are certainly impressive for an 18-year-old rookie (1G 3A), and they’re only going to improve as he continues to adjust to the pro game.

Another reason it was inevitable that he stayed with the Avs was the fact that the Vancouver Canucks sent their 1st round draft choice in 2008, Cody Hodgson, back down to his junior team, also the Brampton Battalion. Hodgson is the reigning CHL Player of the Year, and there’s little doubt he would retain his 1st line center spot. Therefore, Duchene would’ve kept his 2nd line center spot – the same position he has the opportunity to play for an NHL club. There is no question that the best path for both Duchene and the Avalanche was to give him the opportunity to earn his spot, and it seems he has.

Ryan O’Reilly is a different matter. When he surprised the hockey world by earning a roster spot out of training camp, I thought it was an excellent opportunity for him to gain experience, but that he would be sent down before the 9 game limit. It wasn’t so much a matter of his skill or NHL “readiness” per se. I was actually worried more about his ice time as a 3rd line center, whereas he would be a getting 1st line minutes on his junior team. As it turns out, Joe Sacco has been doing an admirable job spreading out the ice time between Duchene, O’Reilly, and 1st line center Paul Stastny. In their previous game against the Detroit Red Wings, Duchene ended up with 18 minutes vs. O’Reilly’s 16.

On top of that, O’Reilly has done nothing but impress with not only his remarkably mature penalty-killing, but also his production as a 3rd line center. He is currently tied with Stastny and defenseman Kyle Quincey for 3rd on the team in scoring with 1 goal and 5 assists in 8 games.

There’s no question that the first two picks of the Avalanche’s 2009 draft will be moving out of their hotel rooms in the next couple of days. The only question is whether or not they’ll stay in Denver. In this blogger’s opinion, it is where they both belong.