The Dallas Stars struggled substantially on the defensive side of the puck at the beginning of the 2014-2015 season. Their season may have been salvaged blue-line wise by a 22-year-old Swede named John Klingberg.

On Monday afternoon, the NHL named John Klingberg “Rookie of the Month” for the month of January. During the January campaign, Klingberg notched five goals, including 2 two-goal performances, and eight assists. He also ended the month with a +1 on-ice rating.

Klingberg was called up from the AHL by the Dallas Stars in early November, and played in his first NHL game on November 11th against the Arizona Coyotes. From there on, he took the NHL by storm and helped the Stars blue line back to a manageable position. His puck-moving skills helped accelerate the Stars defensive forefront, and his ability to make wise decisions in tight situations is almost unheard of for a 22-year-old. In the ten games he played with the Stars in November, John Klingberg scored three goals and tallied five assists.

December he seemed to lose his hot scoring touch just a tad, only cashing in one goal and pulling off two assists. January, as already stated, he was right back on the job, holding his ground in his own zone and attacking furiously in enemy territory.

Now, the question has turned to not if John Klingberg will win the Rookie of the Month, but instead if he has a shot at winning the Calder Memorial Trophy. The Calder Memorial Trophy is awarded to the “player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League.” So, in layman’s terms, it goes to the best rookie in the NHL.

“I do [think he is among the best rookies in the league]. He got off to a real good start. He had 10-14 days where he lost his way a little bit with making some ill-advised plays, but I really like the way he is playing now. He’s kept the game simple when it’s needed to be simple, and he’s made some great individual plays that put him in one of the top rookie categories.” -Lindy Ruff

Right now, here are the statistics for the top six rookies in the NHL:

1. Filip Forsberg 50 GP 17 G 28 A 45 pts

2. Johnny Gaudreau 50 GP 15 G 23 A 38 pts

3. Aaron Ekblad 49 GP 7 G 22 A 29 pts

4. Mark Stone 47 GP 12 G 16 A 28 pts

5. Mike Hoffman 46 GP 17 G 10 A 27 pts

6. John Klingberg 35 GP 9 G 15 A 24 pts

John Klingberg may be sitting in sixth place in points, but that does not mean he doesn’t deserve the award. First off, the award is not given to the rookie with the most points, but instead is given to the rookie who performs the best. Secondly, Klingberg has played 15 less games than Forsberg who sits in first. Even without the 15 games, Klingberg has still proven himself to be just as reliable as Forsberg has been for his team. Same goes when comparing him to any other rookie ahead of him. Klingberg has been an invaluable addition to a Stars struggling blue line this season, and deserves to be considered for the award with his play. If he keeps it up, he can almost assuredly expect an invitation to the NHL Awards this coming offseason.

“It’s good. I feel good. I feel myself developing almost every day, so this is a great time for me to learn and play good hockey.” -John Klingberg

John Klingberg: congratulations on being the best rookie in the NHL in January! You’ve earned it.