Dylan R. Coyle/Reading, PA – Alex Krushelnyski’s ECHL tenure began in 2014 after graduating from Colorado College, and the almost-point-per-game forward has bounced around many teams in both the ECHL and AHL since going pro.
After five teams in five seasons, “Krush” has finally found some stability in professional hockey.
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms signed him to a one-year contract in 2017, and after a great combined performance with the Phantoms and Reading Royals, he earned an extension. The fan-favorite recorded 27 points in only 24 ECHL games last year. That mark made him the Royal with the highest points-per-game ratio (1.13).
He has picked off right where he left off, recording 11 points in the first 10 Royals games.
“He’s a really good player,” head coach Kirk MacDonald said. “He’s a stud. It’s just like we’re saying, he should have two points a game.”
While Krushelynski’s stats are impressive, his hockey sense seems to separate him from the rest of the pack. In the offensive zone, he constantly scans the ice to find the best passing lanes to plop himself into. When he has the puck on his stick, he doesn’t shoot mindlessly. If the goalie has a chunk of the net covered, Krushelnyski looks for a passing option or attempts to out-wait him. His dad, Stanley Cup winner Mike Krushelnyski, was the assistant coach of the 1998 Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings and won three times as a player.
MacDonald believes Krushelnyski can still make the NHL.
“I played with Bobby Robins,” he said. “He was a 31-year-old rookie in Providence who played in the NHL two years later. You can’t tell me it can’t be done. I got my first NHL deal at 27, so it can happen.”
Krushelnyski and the Royals hope to continue their road success this Friday at Adirondack.
Originally published at RoyalsHockey.com