Adam Henrique's Year in Review [2013]

Adam Henrique had quite the year in 2013. Henrique was coming off a stellar rookie season and had a lot to live up to. With the NHL's shortened season, Henrique played a whole season this spring and half of a full season last fall. In between those two sets of 40+ games, Henrique signed a six-year contract with the Devils worth $24 million. This post will review Henrique's 2013 calendar year that goes from a promising sophomore season to his third year in the NHL where he has much to prove.

Spring of 2013

In 2012, Henrique centered superstars Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise. His point totals were very good for a rookie and led him to being part of the NHL rookie of the year discussion. In 2013, Henrique played 42 out of 48 games of the shortened NHL season and didn't quite put up the point totals he did in 2011-12.

Henrique did well for himself in his second season, but couldn't quite score at the same pace as his rookie season. I think Henrique struggled with the inconsistency brought about given Peter DeBoer's constant line changes during games last season. Henrique's shooting percentage was 14.1% for both the fall and spring games he played. However, he has been shooting less this season than he did last season by 0.3 shots per game less. With a shooting percentage of 14.1%, Henrique should be taking a few more shots.

During the spring, Henrique had five cold streaks where he couldn't register a point in three games straight. In the fall, Henrique has been slightly more consistent with his scoring. Still, Henrique's expectations are fairly large as many expect Henrique to be the number two center for years to come in New Jersey.

The Contract

After Henrique's lackluster 2013 campaign, the Devils locked him up for six years. His contract breaks down like so.

CapGeek

Henrique is only making $2MM this year, but by year six he will be making $5.5MM, quite a lot for someone who is only putting up about one point every other game. Henrique's cap hit is $4MM, which, according to CapGeek, is comparable to Bryan Bickell, Joe Pavelski, Derek Roy, Danny Briere, and P-A Parenteau. Henrique is the youngest name on that list, and has one of the longer contracts. This shows me that Lou Lamoriello has a good feeling about Henrique and that he is meant to bloom into a playmaking center in a few years time.

Fall & Winter of 2013

Henrique started off this season slow with only two goals and one assist through the first ten games. In the second ten games, Henrique netted three goals and one assist. Then he had a cool streak from November 8^th to December 26^th, where he played 23 games and scored one goal and registered seven assists. The last three games of the season, Henrique scored three goals and an assist. If you split Henrique's season in half, the stat line would look like so:

20 GP: 5 G, 2 A

21 GP: 4 G, 7A

Henrique's overall production increased, but he scored one less goal in the same number of games. However, he is riding a hot streak into the new year, and that may be a good sign leading into 2014.

The Future

Henrique seems to have clicked with his new line mates, Ryane Clowe and Michael Ryder. Perhaps if DeBoer can keep Henrique's line together, it will help him feel more comfortable and take a few more shots, likely leading to more goals for the Devils. Or maybe Henrique is just getting lucky? He did admit his family got him a horseshoe over Christmas break... Or maybe he just has the skill and dedication and it is starting to shine through the Devils mediocre season.