Duchene Named Rookie of the Month

The NHL recognized Matt Duchene’s recent success by  naming him Rookie of the Month of December. Duchene, who has been scoring on a point-per-game pace since adjusting to the NHL game, had 13 points in 14 games in December, leading all rookies.

Duchene trails only John Tavares in overall rookie scoring by a single point, 28-27.

Coincidentally, the two top rookies will be facing each other for the first time professionally tonight when Tavares’ New York Islanders visit Duchene’s Colorado Avalanche.

Another young center receiving an award this month is our own TJ Hensick. Hensick has been named the American Hockey League’s Player of the Month of December.

TJ Hensick has been tearing up the AHL with 25 points in 17 games, but hasn't yet been able to hold down an NHL job.

The on-again-off-again Avalanche player was sent down to our minor league affiliate the Lake Erie Monsters on November 26th. Since then he’s lit the league on fire, scoring 25 points in 17 games. Twenty three of those points (four goals and 19 assists) were scored in December, to go along with his plus-7 rating.

It’s obvious that Hensick is too good to keep mucking around in the AHL. However, he’s failed to show the type of consistency we need to justify him taking a spot on the big roster. We may want to hold onto him in case we hit the injury bug again. Another option would be to shop him, seeking a trade for a good winger or some picks. Bringing home this award catches some attention, since the AHL is generally considered to be just a step below the NHL.

I don’t know Avs fans, what do you think? Is it too early give up on the Hensick Project? Or should we get the most out of our investment while we can?