Gabe Landeskog and Nathan MacKinnon sit side by side and have the Avalanche’s only confined locker stalls at the team’s practice facility. Each has an opposite elbow against a wall, and given that they are the Avs’ two youngest players, it would seem they were assigned those spaces because of age.

Perhaps, but that area is now being dubbed the “Calder corner” — a place where decorated NHL rookies sit. Landeskog won the 2012 Calder Trophy as the league’s rookie of the year and MacKinnon is heavily favored to be selected this year’s top rookie.

Despite being the second-youngest player in the NHL (born one day before Florida’s Aleksander Barkov), MacKinnon’s monster month of January has him leading all rookies in goals (17), power-play goals (seven), points (33) and shots (141). He has scored seven goals in his past nine games, including three multiple-goal efforts.

“Sometimes Nate doesn’t know what he’s doing,” Landeskog, 21, said of the 18-year-old MacKinnon. “He’s doing something so great, he doesn’t see the big picture, and that’s great. He can certainly do great things here. But the more you think about (the Calder Trophy), the harder you tend to squeeze your stick and things won’t go as well for you.”

Landeskog, drafted No. 2 overall in 2011, is a power forward, a big hitter who can make plays and score — a one-stop shop winger. MacKinnon, drafted No. 1 overall last June, has more of a Hollywood skill set — elite skating, stick handling and shooting.

MacKinnon can play physically, but the Avs don’t necessary want him to.

“The first half of the season, rookies are trying to figure out the league, figure out the game, and as the season goes along you figure out how to be successful the way you have to play,” Landeskog said. “The way Nate’s playing is completely different than how I played my first year and how I play now, but he’s certainly doing a great job at such a young age.”

MacKinnon is trying not to think about winning the Calder Trophy. But the way he’s producing, it’s hard to ignore.

“It would be fun to win it, obviously,” MacKinnon said. “So many rookies this year, some older guys in the mix. I think the more you think about it, the worse (my chances) will be. I’m just trying to go play hockey and help the team, and whatever comes after the season is great, but we want to keep climbing in our division. But, yeah, it would be fun to win it.”

Avalanche coach Patrick Roy would prefer his prized rookie not even discuss the award.

“It’s too early to talk about Calder,” Roy said. “I think Nate needs to focus on one day at a time and what he controls — and what he controls is how he’s going to play the game (Friday) night in Florida. I don’t want him to think more than that. Individual honors are nice, but you know what? (That’s) in June. Right now, it’s about the team.”

At the top of the class

The NHL’s top rookies eligible for the Calder Trophy:

1. F Nathan MacKinnon, Avs, 49 games, 17 goals-16 assists-33 points — The NHL’s second-youngest player leads rookie scorers in most categories.

2. F Chris Kreider, New York Rangers, 45, 13-17-30 — Played 23 regular-season games and 26 playoff games combined past two seasons.

3. D Torey Krug, Boston, 49, 11-14-25 — Played 15 games for Boston in last postseason.

4. F Tyler Johnson, Tampa Bay, 50, 12-18-30 — American speedster played 14 games for the Lightning last season.

5. D Hampus Lindholm, Anaheim, 49, 5-12-17 — Leads all rookies with a plus-24 rating.

COLORADO AT FLORIDA

5:30 p.m. Friday, ALT; 950 AM

Spotlight on Drew Shore: Florida’s second-year forward from the University of Denver scored twice in a 5-1 victory at Pittsburgh on Monday. Shore played in 43-of-48 games as a rookie in the NHL’s lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, but he has been pushed down in the top-prospects pecking order with Florida’s addition of 18-year-old Aleksander Barkov and Jimmy Hayes. Still, he’s proving he belongs.

NOTEBOOK

Avalanche: Semyon Varlamov will start in goal. … Forward Alex Tanguay is expected to return from a 36-game absence. … Forward John Mitchell did not travel with the team Thursday because of illness. He was scheduled to travel on his own Friday and expected to play, coach Patrick Roy said. … Roy said defenseman Nate Guenin (ankle) likely needs another day or two of conditioning.

Panthers: Goalie Tim Thomas, a late-round draft pick of the Quebec Nordiques in 1994, lived in Denver last season when he was semi- retired. The 39-year-old attended his first NHL training camp in 1997 with the Avalanche, which included Roy.

Mike Chambers: mchambers@denverpost.com or twitter.com/mchambers