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TORONTO -- The first-year GM of the Colorado Avalanche walked past a gaggle of media Tuesday at Air Canada Centre in hockey's self-proclaimed mecca.

"Who is that?" asked one high-profile NHL media member.

Greg Sherman, that's who it was. And he, like many of the players on his team, is recognized by few people.

Just who are these 2009-10 Colorado Avalanche and how the heck have they started the season with nine out of a possible 12 points?

"We have new management, a new coach, new players and obviously a pretty young team," Paul Stastny, the team's biggest star, told ESPN.com. "Right now, we're playing with confidence."

Let's take a closer look the rebuilding Avs and their surprising start to the season:

The teens

Matt Duchene and Ryan O'Reilly are the first 18-year-olds to ever play for the Avalanche, let alone center the second and third lines, respectively.

"They're playing good minutes and they're playing good minutes because they're playing well," said first-year coach Joe Sacco. "That's the bottom line. Obviously, they're both young kids and they're going to make mistakes, but they bring a lot of energy and that enthusiasm into our dressing room and into our lineup, along with some speed on the ice. Both guys are playing well."

Duchene, who won't turn 19 until January, has shown his speed and vision while picking up three assists through six games. On Tuesday night against Toronto, he blew past two Maple Leafs in the neutral zone, burst into the offensive zone and unleashed a quick wrist shot. Later in the game, he skated around Leafs blueliner Mike Komisarek, cut to the net and produced another scoring chance. He's also playing on the first-unit power play.

"He's done great," Stastny said. "He hasn't scored yet, but he's had chances. He's had three or four breakaways. It's going to happen. He keeps creating chances. His confidence will build even more once the goals go in. But even right now, he's playing unbelievable for us. He's capable of playing both ends of the ice, which is important."

Yes, this kid is NHL-ready, and he already has the prime-time approval from none other than Don Cherry.

Duchene, the third overall pick in June following John Tavares and Victor Hedman, is trying to make sure he can play at both ends of the rink. That's how you earn the trust of your coach.

"It's obviously tough playing against the top talent, but I feel defensively and positionally, that's been the best part of my game," said Duchene. "The offense is going to come."

Duchene was widely expected to make the jump. But O'Reilly? He was Colorado's second pick, 33rd overall, just four months ago in Montreal. Talk about a possible steal. Whether or not the Avs have found the next John Madden or Ryan Kesler remains to be seen, but there he was again Tuesday night, killing penalties. Monday afternoon in Boston, he was on the ice in a one-goal game with less than a minute remaining.

"He's done a good job, he's been a responsible player for us," said Sacco. "He's on our top penalty kill right now. If he continues to do the job defensively, he'll be put in those situations to respond."

The other youngsters

Youth abounds on the rebuilding Avs, the fourth-youngest squad in the NHL: forwards T.J. Galiardi, 21; David Jones, 25; Cody McLeod, 25; T.J. Hensick, 23 Chris Stewart, 21; and the 23-year-old Stastny. On defense, there's Kyle Cumiskey, 22, and Kyle Quincey, 24.

These aren't your older brother's Avs.

"Our top-line center is going to turn 24 this year," Sherman told ESPN.com. "That is extremely young. It's the reality of the lineup. It's a lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm."

The star

Indeed, it's easy to forget Stastny is only 23. He himself refers to the youngsters on the team as "kids." But he knows his NHL pedigree suggests he must take on a bigger role.

"I was in that position a couple of years ago where I'd look up to the older guys and see what they did," said Stastny, no doubt referring to the retired Joe Sakic. "On the ice, you have to lead by example because younger guys look up to you. Sometimes they ask you questions and you have to be ready for that. I try to help them out as much as I can. Obviously I'm still learning but their learning curve is a lot bigger."

The goalie

The Avs found their man in net on July 1, when they reeled in the underrated Craig Anderson via free agency. How does a 4-1-1 start with a .940 save percentage and 1.98 goals-against average sound?

"You see just how poised he is in net," Stastny said of the 28-year-old goalie. "He makes that first save, he reads the play pretty well. It's a lot easier playing with a goalie whose confidence is that high. It gives us opportunities to take more chances, although we don't want to lean on him too hard."

The defenseman

Kyle Quincey wasn't just a throw-in in the Ryan Smyth trade. He was dynamite last season in Los Angeles after the Kings scooped him off waivers from Detroit (a rare Red Wings mistake). He already has six points (1-5) and a plus-2 rating in six games.

"I knew of Kyle just from coaching against him in the American Hockey League," said Sacco. "To me, the one thing that he's demonstrated is his calming influence back there. He's very poised with the puck. He makes good decisions. He's better offensively that I thought, so he's been able to contribute that way. And he's another guy that competes."

The coach

Sacco's hiring as coach produced very little buzz around the league. It wasn't the marquee name like a Patrick Roy, who many thought would return to Colorado as its bench boss. But the man the team promoted from its AHL affiliate has connected with his players.

"I was able to see him work with our own guys the last four years [in the AHL]," said Sherman. "He has a way of communicating in his way to your players and how to get the best out of them. Joe is a straight-forward guy. You don't have to work out what he's thinking; he's going to tell you. But he's fair."

Special teams

Through Tuesday night, the Avs were ranked second in the NHL on the power play (38.5 percent). The penalty kill isn't too shabby, either (fifth in the league at 87.5 percent).

"Right now, the power play and penalty kill has really kind of taken over for us," said Anderson.

Consider this: Last season, the Avs were 25th on the power play and 21st on the penalty kill.

Motivation

Did any prominent media organization pick the Avs to make the playoffs this season? The dire predictions can be an easy and useful motivational tool for a coach in any sport.

"We haven't really talked about that as a group, but I think any player that has pride certainly takes it personal," said Sacco. "Our guys are responding. We have a good work ethic; we work extremely hard on most nights. Two things we were looking for in training camp were energy and effort, and usually when you have those two things, you get execution. We've been able to do that."

The final word

After seeing their sellout streak end in 2006, the Avalanche can't take their fans for granted. They have to win them back. And it starts with an honest rebuilding, from the ground up.

"We're at the stage in our franchise that we have to earn our market's respect," said Sherman. "We understand that. We have our challenges. With that being said, I feel real confident with the players that are on this club right now. I have a real strong comfort level with the people I'm surrounded by in the front office; our coaching staff is finding its identity. All these things will continue to evolve. Hey, we're only six games in and we recognize that, but it's a positive start."

Pierre LeBrun covers the NHL for ESPN.com.