Kerby Rychel

Kerby Rychel
Born	October 7, 1994 Torrance, California
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shoots	Left
NHL team (P) Cur. team Former teams	Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Marlies (AHL) Columbus Blue Jackets
NHL Draft	19th overall, 2013 Columbus Blue Jackets
Playing career	2014–present

Kerby Rychel (born October 7, 1994) is an American-born Canadian professional ice hockey player. He is currently playing with the Toronto Marlies in the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect for the Toronto Maple Leafs organization of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round (19th overall) of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. He was born in Torrance, California, but grew up in Tecumseh, Ontario.^[1] His father is 1996 Stanley Cup winner Warren Rychel.^[2]

Playing career

Rychel was originally selected 21st overall in the 2011 OHL Priority Selection by the Barrie Colts.^[3]

Rychel was rated as a top prospect and was a first round selection at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.^[4]

In his debut professional season in 2014–15, on an injury plagued Blue Jackets roster, Rychel was recalled from AHL affiliate, the Springfield Falcons and made his NHL debut on November 29, 2014 against the Nashville Predators.^[5]

Rychel gained notoriety during the 2015–16 NHL season when reports began to surface that he had requested a trade out of Columbus over his lack of playing time at the NHL level. Rychel and his father, who also serves as his agent, held a meeting with management staff during the Blue Jackets development camp where concerns were raised over Rychel being buried on the team's depth chart.^[6] Ultimately though, Rychel would not be traded during the season, and would split time between the club and their new AHL affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters. The Monsters would finish as one of the top teams and the league, and would end up winning the Calder Cup.

On June 25, 2016, less than an hour after the conclusion of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Rychel was traded by the Blue Jackets to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for defenceman Scott Harrington and a conditional 5th round pick.^[7] The Maple Leafs were rumoured to be one of the teams most interested in Rychel following his trade request.^[6]

International play

Rychel has enjoyed a standout major junior career. During the 2010–11 season he won a gold medal with Team Ontario at the 2012 World U-17 Hockey Challenge,^[8] and during the 2011–12 season he won a bronze medal with Team Canada at the 2012 IIHF World U18 Championships.^[9] During the 2012–13 season he was an invited participant at the 2013 CHL Top Prospects Game.^[10]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2010–11	Mississauga St. Michael's Majors	OHL		30	2	6	8	47		—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Windsor Spitfires	OHL		32	5	8	13	26		18	2	5	7	14
2011–12	Windsor Spitfires	OHL		68	41	33	74	54		4	2	0	2	5
2012–13	Windsor Spitfires	OHL		68	40	47	87	94		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Windsor Spitfires	OHL		27	16	23	39	15		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Guelph Storm	OHL		31	18	33	51	28		20	11	21	32	23
2014–15	Springfield Falcons	AHL		51	12	21	33	43		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Columbus Blue Jackets	NHL		5	0	3	3	2		—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Lake Erie Monsters	AHL		37	6	21	27	53		17	1	5	6	26
2015–16	Columbus Blue Jackets	NHL		32	2	7	9	15		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				37	2	10	12	17		—	—	—	—	—

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2011	Canada Ontario	U17			5	2	2	4	0
2012	Canada	WJC18			7	5	3	8	12
2012	Canada	IH18			5	1	1	2	0
2014	Canada	WJC	4th		7	0	0	0	0
Junior totals					24	8	6	14	12

Awards and honours

Awards	Year
CHL
CHL Top Prospects Game	2013	[11]
CHL Memorial Cup All-Star Team	2014	[12]
AHL
Calder Cup (Lake Erie Monsters)	2016	[13]
International
World U-17 Hockey Challenge Gold Medal with Team Ontario	2012	[14]
Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament Gold Medal with Team Canada	2012
IIHF World U18 Championship Bronze Medal with Team Canada	2012	[15]

References

1. "Kerby Rychel's NHL Draft Profile". National Hockey League. 2013-06-21. Retrieved 2013-06-21.
2. "2012 NHL draft: Unlike father Warren, Spitfires' Kerby Rychel looks to be a sure bet". National Post. 2012-03-02. Retrieved 2013-06-25.
3. "Rychel pick is justified". The Barrie Examiner. 2010-05-03. Retrieved 2013-06-21.
4. "2013 NHL Draft Rankings War Room: Combining Central Scouting's Final Rankings". TheHockeyWriters.com. 2013-06-21. Retrieved 2013-06-22.
5. "Kerby Rychel set for NHL debut". hockeybuzz.com. 2014-11-28. Retrieved 2014-11-28.
6. "Report: Leafs, Flames, Canadiens interested in Rychel trade". Sportsnet. Rogers. January 4, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
7. "Maple Leafs acquire Kerby Rychel from Columbus". Toronto Maple Leafs. 2016-06-25. Retrieved 2016-06-25.
8. "Kerby Rychel prospect profile". Hockey'sFuture.com. 2014-05-14. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
9. "Rychel proud of bronze medal". Canada.com. 2012-02-02. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
10. "2013 CHL Top Prospects Game: Sporting bloodlines flow through number of prospects". Hockey'sFuture.com. 2013-02-01. Retrieved 2015-04-13.
11. "CHL Top Prospect game rosters". Canadian Hockey League. 2013-01-04. Retrieved 2015-05-14.
12. "Memorial Cup All-Star Teams". Memorial Cup. 2014-05-04. Retrieved 2014-05-04.
13. Brown, Tony (June 12, 2016). "Bjorkstrand's OT goal clinches Monsters' first-ever Calder Cup championship". Columbus Blue Jackets. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
14. "Ontario crowned U17 Challenge champions". Winnipeg Sun. 2011-01-04. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
15. "Canada's National Men's Under-18 Team Wins Bronze Medal at 2012 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship". Hockey Canada. 2012-02-02. Retrieved 2015-05-14.

External links

• Kerby Rychel's career statistics at EliteProspects.com
  
• Kerby Rychel's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database