Well what was a first good season of a rebuild came to halt earlier this week and now it's time to review how the team did.

Welcome to part one of three of the Colorado Avalanche 2009-10 season review, today's focusing on the forwards.

If there was any part the Avalanche roster that surprised, after Goaltender Craig Anderson that is, it was the forwards.

The Avalanche used its youth to great success, using ten rookies for a total of 166 points, almost twice that of any other team in the NHL.

It all started with the 2009 NHL draft where the Avalanche drafted not one but two of their roster players that they used in the 2009-10 campaign in Matt Duchene and the ever surprising Ryan O'Reilly.

The Avs knew they would be lead on offense by Paul Stastny, the playmaking extraordinaire that he is but the main question going into this season was "who would center the second line?"

Overall, Stastny had a solid season, besting his career total in points with 79 points, 20 of them goals. While he was knocked for not coming up big in big times, he was solid both for the Avs and for Team USA in the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

However, it was Ryan O'Reilly and Matt Duchene who took this season and made it extraordinary.

Because of knocks on his skating ability O'Reilly fell to the Avs at the 33rd spot and the Avs quickly danced up to the podium to call hi9s name. While Duchene was touted as a Joe Sakic-like superstar, O'Reilly flew into camp under the Radar.

Once at camp, O'Reilly impressed the coaches enough to sign him to a contract and give him a ten game trial in the NHL which he made a big statement, totaling nine points in the first ten games. O'Reilly demonstrated an unmatched knowledge for the game that made him the Avs' defensive specialist.

However, it was not all the Ryan O'Reilly show.

Though Matt Duchene started the first 20 games slowly, acquiring only seven points, three of them goals, he heated up in the second half like Steven Stamkos. Duchene overall had a hard time knowing when to use his speed and when to use his body to protect the puck. He got happy feet and would end up turning over the puck.

He would finish the year as a Calder trophy finalist with 55 points, 24 of them goals and while he only got three points in the playoffs, he has learned how and when to use his speed to make plays. He'll need to work on defense and strength and conditioning but in the next three years, Avs fans will have fun watching Duchene grown and eventually flourish.

This year the Avs got a lot of production from the farm system. Whenever an injury struck, it seemed that the Avs would have a player come up and play admirably in relief. When Milan Hejduk was hurt, Brandon Yip came up to fill the void. When Wojtek Wolski was traded, his replacement, TJ Galiardi, stepped onto the first line and impressed. Even when David Jones got hurt, Chris Stewart stepped up his game.

If the Avs had a breakout player, it was Chris Stewart. Though he had a bad start to the year, Stewart found his game after a short sojourn in Lake Erie and started to produce like the power forward the Avs thought they had when they drafted him. He notched 28 goals on his belt, three in one game against the St. Louis Blues. This year Stewart found a way to either blow by defenders or push them back to the his scoring chances while also showing great hands around the net. With him up for a contract this offseason, he should be a staple on the Avalanche for may years to come.

Overall, it was a very successful year for the Avalanche as far as the forwards are concerned. They got their goal totals up to 237 from 290 the year before. They had four 20-goal scorers instead of two the previous year but it was not just the offense the thrived this year.

Lead by Masterson trophy nominee Matt Hendricks and Cody McLeod, the Avs forwards were much more physical than years past. They hit more people, grinded more along the boards and punished forwards for being in the zone, keeping the pressure off their aging defensive corps.

Both of these elements were sewn together perfectly by the Avs to make them a playoff-caliber team.

2010-11 outlook

Though the Sharks were victorious in first round playoff series, the Avs fans should just see this as the beginning. Everyone who played significant time this year learned a lot in a short amount of time and showed signs to the fans that this is just the beginning.

Duchene will figure out how to score consistently, as will O'Reilly. The Avs should have plethora of wingers from which to choose next year to give them a really dangerous offense, possibly nearing the 275 goal mark next year.

In addition, we haven't seen what will become of Stoa who, if he figures out the speed of the game, both mentally physically, could be a real force on the left side. Also, the Avs will a full campaign with Peter Mueller flanking Duchene and running the powerplay could be really interesting.

Long story short (too late) this is just the beginning for the Avs, a first step into a brighter future just beyond the horizon.

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