One of the big surprises in European hockey this season was 22-year-old Czech left winger Jakub Rychlovský, who seemingly came out of nowhere to lead the Extraliga in goals. Having recorded 34 points in his first 138 Extraliga games over four seasons for Bílí Tygři Liberec, he exploded this year with a league-leading 26 goals plus 20 helpers playing on a line with Martin Faško-Rudaš and league points leader Tomáš Filippi. He then added seven points in nine playoff games.
That didn’t go unnoticed among NHL teams, and on Tuesday the Detroit Red Wings signed Rychlovský to a two-year entry-level contract reportedly worth $1,900,000 US.
“I'm glad that Jakub was able to sign a contract overseas and we’ll keep our fingers crossed that he makes it to the NHL,” Liberec coach Filip Pešan was quoted on the club’s website. “It is of course a significant loss for us, but I am sure that we will find a way to at least partially replace him. There is an opportunity for other promising players of our club to take over his role. I’m confident we can handle it and we wish Jakub the best of luck on his overseas mission.”
Rychlovský was never drafted, as his 5-foot-10, 180-pound frame didn’t impress many and his junior career wasn’t particularly remarkable. He appeared in one U18 World Championship and one World Junior tournament, each in his last year of eligibility, and didn’t play a prominent role in either. This season, however, his scoring touch with his club team carried over to the Czech national team, where he recorded nine points in 10 games and had a decent shot of making the team that eventually won gold at this year’s IIHF World Championship.
“I’m enjoying it and having a lot of fun,” Rychlovský said back in December when he got his first national team selection. “I've always enjoyed hockey, but when it’s good, going to the rink is a little more fun. I think that it’s not only me, but the whole team is doing well, which is great. But at the same time, I don’t want to rest on my laurels. I have to keep working on myself so that I can be a better player in the future than I am now.”
As THN Detroit Red Wings writer Connor Earegood mentioned, it seems likely that at 22 years of age, Rychlovský will make the jump overseas whether he makes the Wings’s squad out of camp or not. A roster spot on the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins seems like a reasonable bet but a return to Liberec is always possible, though.