North Stars fortunate to have Sych patrolling blue line

He remembers the sombre conversation he had with Kevin Hasselberg this past summer when the former North Stars coach informed him he had taken a professional coaching job in Pensacola and wouldn’t be returning to the Battlefords.

But most impressive, perhaps, is the clarity with which he remembers his first SJHL shift.

“It was 15 seconds,” he recalled after practice on Wednesday. “They got a penalty so we went on a power play and then I didn’t play for the next 12 minutes because they just kept handing off power plays so they couldn’t put me out there.”

So did that continue for the rest of the game?

Far from it, in fact.

“I played a lot actually because we only had five ‘D’ and then Brody Luhning got a 10-minute misconduct in the second period so we were down to four ‘D,’” he said. “So I was out there every second shift and then [Luhning] got kicked out at the start of the third so I played every second shift in the third.”

All this happened roughly four years ago, with Sych just 15 years old, playing as an affiliated player.

Fast forward roughly four years and the North Battleford native is as sturdy a defenceman as you’ll find in the league. He’s the perfect case of the stats not telling the whole story.

He’s one of the go to leaders off the ice, he’s physical in his own zone, he’s excellent at getting in shooting lanes and blocking shots, and he also is very good at getting his own shot past bodies and through to the net.

Yet ask him to describe his own game and he’ll tell you none of this, struggling at first to find the right words.

“I don’t know, I’m pretty good at getting into position and knowing where to be and anticipating plays and stuff like that rather than making up for it with my lack of speed,” he said. “I think the game pretty well I’d say.”

So high hockey IQ?

“Sure,” he responded, almost as if he’s reluctant to take credit for something he’s good at.

When Sych was missing from the North Stars lineup because of a four-game suspension – one that was handed out after a high hit in Estevan on Oct. 15 – North Stars head coach Nate Bedford said it would be “impossible” to replace him.

“He’s probably underrated in terms of his ability as a big defenceman to move the puck and move his feet and make good plays and he’s smart and he’s physical,” Bedford said. “He goes about business quietly and that’s probably why he’s under the radar to some teams.”

Sych hasn’t always been under the radar.

In January 2015, while playing in his first full season with the North Stars, he was the only SJHL player named to the CJHL top prospects game in Oakville, Ont.

It was there that St. Lawrence University, a division I NCAA school, expressed interest in him. They followed up their conversation at the prospects game by watching him play during an SJHL southern road swing the following month and then convinced Sych to fly down northern New York state to tour the campus.

Before February ended, Sych had committed to St. Lawrence for the 2017-18 season after getting offered a full scholarship.

Since then, however, Sych, who still has another year of SJHL eligibility next season, has changed his mind, and won’t be attending.

“Looking back, it was kind of one of those things where it’s what everybody wants, so it’s like, ‘yeah of course I want it,’” he said. “[But] I don’t think that’s what I’m playing hockey for. I enjoy playing at home and playing in front of my friends and family and trying to have fun. I think that’s the most important part and then when you’re having fun, you’ll have success out of it.”

Sych hasn’t ruled out the possibility of school altogether, but he’s just not focused on that right now.

“It’s not really my main focus to get [a scholarship],” he said. “I’m just kind of worried about my own game and worried about winning as a North Star and if the right opportunity comes along, then obviously I’ll think about it.”

Right now, the North Stars are indeed winning at the moment.

They are currently on a six-game winning streak and are 14-5 this season, despite having played 11 of their first 19 games on the road. Their record away from the Civic Centre is 8-3.

Last season, the North Stars had an outstanding regular season, finishing with 43 wins in 58 games, good for first in the league by a considerable margin. But come playoff time, they were knocked out by the physical Flin Flon Bombers in the second round.

Sych thinks last season the North Stars didn’t face enough adversity in the regular season and that this year has been different.

“Things came easy for us last year in the regular season,” he said. “Already this year we’ve faced enough adversity that once we get in the playoffs then we’ll know how to get through it.”

The next time adversity rolls around may not be until next month, as the North Stars are at home for seven of 10 games in November.

Friday is one of those few road games, as the North Stars travel to La Ronge to face the struggling Ice Wolves before taking on the Humboldt Broncos at the Civic Centre on Saturday.

Nathan Kanter is battlefordsNOW’s sports reporter and voice of the Battlefords North Stars. He can be reached at Nathan.kanter@jpbg.ca or tweet him @NathanKanter11

by Nathan Kanter

North Stars fortunate to have Sych patrolling blue line

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