Windsor sniper Kerby Rychel entered the season on a roll following a breakout 41-goal sophomore year plus a pair of international gold medals - at the U17 World Challenge and Ivan Hlinka.
However, Rychel is off to a slow start and showing signs of frustration, hindered by a lesser supporting cast. He might get a boost though from the possible return of Boston second-rounder Alex Khokhlachev, who is having his own struggles in the KHL with Moscow Spartak.
It's only a matter of time before Rychel gets going as he is certainly putting forth the required effort as head scout David Burstyn observes in the following scouting report.
Kerby Rychel (LW/C), Windsor - skating has undergone a complete turnaround in terms of acceleration, balance, and edge work over the last two seasons .. start-up speed is still a tad awkward though as he really has to scratch and dig into the ice .. having added over 10 pounds of muscle to his frame, he is also better equipped to engage in physical 1-on-1 contests down low .. goes to the front of the net without hesitation .. produces a strong work effort in all areas of the ice .. fights through checks and maintains a high competitive level even if his team is down by a large margin .. top weapon is a lethal shot - excels operating at the top of the dots with the man advantage .. would better exploit his shooting abilities with a natural playmaker such as Khokhlachev in the middle .. too often must do the majority of the grunt work in both the offensive zone and on the backcheck .. can get fatigued when fully applying himself in the defensive zone - and runs out of energy when the play turns the other way .. however, his defensive consistency needs to improve .. gets caught standing still and watching his man - even though he has a good sense of detail to the play unfolding around him .. efforts must be stronger - needs to bear down and apply more force on puckcarriers .. appears frustrated, body language is off - feeling the burden of having to do too much for this club.