COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – After winning National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Forward of the Week on Monday and NCHC Player of the Month on Tuesday, the awards continued for Denver junior forward Massimo Rizzo on Wednesday when the Hockey Commissioners Association (HCA) named him the men’s National Co-Player of the Month for October.

Rizzo shared the men’s National Player of the Month spotlight with Michigan sophomore forward Rutger McGroarty.

Rizzo (Burnaby, B.C.) started his junior campaign on fire, tallying points in all six games Denver played in October, including five multi-point games. His 14 points and nine assists in the first month both tied for third nationally and ranked first in the NCHC. Rizzo’s 2.33 points per game are also third in the NCAA, while his five goals tie for third in the NCHC and equaled McGroarty’s output in two fewer games. Rizzo logged a +10 plus/minus in October, which tied for first nationally.
 
Along with opening the season on a six-game point streak, Rizzo is currently on a four-game goal-scoring streak (Oct. 20-28), tying his career long, with all five of his goals coming in that span. The Philadelphia Flyers prospect started the season by setting up goals, handing out seven assists in a sweep of Alaska in Fairbanks on Oct. 7-8, including a career-high four in Saturday’s finale (Oct. 8). Rizzo then started his goal streak Oct. 20 at then-No. 10 Providence with a two-point night, while scoring again the next night in a 4-3 win at then-No. 3 and now-No. 1 Boston College. This past weekend, he tallied a goal and an assist against Augustana on Oct. 27, before notching his first multi-goal game of the year in a 4-0 win against Air Force a night later, including scoring the game-winner.
 
Rizzo, a First-Team All-NCHC selection last year, was named NCHC Forward of the Week after his three-goal, four-point outing Oct. 27-28. He fired 15 shots on goal in October, giving him an impressive .333 shooting percentage during the month. Rizzo also won 45 of 94 faceoffs taken in October, including going 37-26 in the circle over his final three games of the month.
 
Along with Rizzo and McGroarty, Boston University forward Macklin Celebrini was named HCA Men’s Rookie of the Month and RIT junior goaltender Tommy Scarfone gloved Men’s Goaltender of the Month for October. Denver freshman defenseman Boston Buckberger was runner-up for National Rookie of the Month, while North Dakota senior Ludvig Persson was runner-up for National Goaltender of the Month, after both earned NCHC monthly honors for October.
 
The NCHC had one HCA National Player of the Month last season in former Western Michigan forward Jason Polin, who won it in November. Five NCHC players received HCA national monthly honors overall last year.
 
Rizzo and the No. 2 Denver Pioneers open NCHC play this weekend against in-state rival Colorado College Friday and Saturday nights in Denver and Colorado Springs, respectively, with both games on NCHC.tv.