He is the nation's third-leading scorer, has been one of the most consistent players all season and is a potent two-way player.

If he were on almost any other team, these attributes would place the bulk of the attention on junior Kevin Porter.

But not when he plays alongside a human highlight reel in T.J. Hensick, the nation's top scorer and a Hobey Baker Award finalist.

It might be difficult to get out from under the shadow, but that's all right with Porter.

"He gets the attention, and it's no big deal to me," Porter said. "I don't like doing the media stuff, doing the interviews. That's not my type of thing, that's his thing."

It's the same on the ice, too.

Hensick is more likely to do something that will make your jaw drop, but Porter also has a knack for making the right play.

"T.J.'s more noticeable than Kevin Porter, but Porter can be just as productive," Michigan coach Red Berenson said.

The chemistry between Porter and Hensick has helped make them college hockey's highest-scoring duo. When the two enter the zone on a 2-on-1 break, it's almost a foregone conclusion that one of them will light the lamp.

For Porter's role on the line and everything else he does for the team, Hensick said his buddy should receive more attention than he's gotten.

"I'm not sure why he doesn't get the recognition he deserves," Hensick said. "In my eyes, he's a top-10 candidate for the Hobey this year."

And with the NCAA Tournament starting Saturday for Michigan, Berenson couldn't be happier one of his top two offensive producers is retuning to early season form.

Porter started season with a point in 27 of Michigan's first 31 games. Then, the Northville native experienced a season-worst four-game point drought after missing an open-net opportunity on a pass from Hensick in overtime against Michigan State in February.

After ending the skid, he has notched seven points in five games, including three goals last weekend.

"Obviously the two of them are much better than one," Berenson said. "When you get the both playing well off each other, then (it's like) two horses can pull about 10 times more than the sum of each one of them individually."

Since retuning to his scoring ways, the most meaningful of those goals might have been the first of his two goals against Michigan State last Friday, which was a mirror image of the one he miffed last month.

"I thought about that for a long time," Porter said after Friday's game. "Today felt like it was payback."

Actually, he showed some of that Hensick-esque flash this weekend.

In one, he spun through traffic to maintain possession before firing a backhand shot to the goalie's short side with his back to the net.

In his other goal, he benefited from a little puck luck but showed his talent with a gorgeous shot. He sent a long rebound back at Notre Dame goalie David Brown with a top-shelf wrist shot.

Even when Porter doesn't score goals, he can still be a valuable asset to the team. His work on the power-play and penalty-kill units can be just as important.

"The good thing about Kevin Porter is that he is a two-way player," Berenson said. "He doesn't have to score for our team to win because he does so many other things too."

In the playoffs, preventing another team from scoring can be just as valuable as scoring. It can also sway the game's momentum, which is why Porter could be so integral to Michigan's success.

Whether he's poking home one of Hensick's passes or killing off a penalty, he can demonstrate his importance to the team.

"We're going to need him this weekend if we are going to have a chance," Hensick said.

Off the ice he has also proven his worth to the team.

In the locker room, teammates respect what he has to say and take note of how he acts.

"He's a big leader on this team and a future captain, in my eyes, for this program," Hensick said.