NEW YORK - St. Louis Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko, who led all rookies in scoring with 9 points (5 goals, 4 assists) in seven games, has been named the NHL Rookie of the Month for January.

Tarasenko edged Tampa Bay Lightning center Cory Conacher (3-6--9 in six games), Edmonton Oilers center Nail Yakupov (4-1--5 in seven games), Oilers defenseman Justin Schultz (2-3--5 in seven games) and Montreal Canadiens center Alex Galchenyuk (1-4--5 in six games).

Tarasenko, 21, made his NHL debut on Jan. 19 and became just the second player in Blues history to score a pair of goals in his first game (Doug Palazzari, 1974-75) in a 6-0 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

He notched 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) in his next game, a 4-3 shootout win over the Nashville Predators on Jan. 21, becoming the first Blues rookie in nearly 35 years to record 5 points in his first two NHL contests (Wayne Babych, 1978-79).

Tarasenko closed the month with a four-game point streak, capped by his fifth goal of the season in a 4-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Jan. 31.

The Yaroslavl, Russia native was drafted by the Blues in the first round (16th overall) of the 2010 Entry Draft.