Hockey players who are born and raised in New England tend to go the college route as they chase their dreams of playing in the National Hockey League.
However, when some of them come to the fork in the road, they embark on a different path and head to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
One such player who chose the latter direction — after a brief stop along the first road — is Ludlow, Mass., native Jake Ryczek, who’s in his second season with the Halifax Mooseheads.
Ryczek, a 20-year-old defenseman, was selected in the seventh round of the 2016 NHL draft by the Chicago Blackhawks and started last season with Providence College, where he scored one goal in five games. He then left NCAA hockey behind and headed to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he totaled 27 points (7-20-27) in 33 contests to end the campaign. He added three assists in nine playoff matches.
Through his first 30 games this season, Ryczek has 19 points (5-14-19). The 5-foot-11, 185-pounder occupies one of Halifax’s three overage slots and hasn’t been signed by Chicago.
Fellow blueliner Braeden Virtue, who was born in Hartford, Conn., raised in Worcester, Mass., and played with the USPHL’s Islanders HC U-16 during the 2016-17 campaign, didn’t take any detours en route to the QMJHL. He went straight there prior to last season and at 16 years old was the youngest player on the Quebec Remparts. He notched three assists in 27 games.
Unfortunately, Virtue, who turns 18 on Jan. 22, has missed significant time this season due to injury and has appeared in only seven matches, without registering a point. The 6-1, 190-pounder is the son of Terry Virtue, who played in four games with the Boston Bruins and one game with the New York Rangers in the late 1990s.
Center Domenic Malatesta, a Boston Junior Rangers product, was bypassed in both of his eligible NHL drafts and is hoping to sign a professional deal after the season. Malatesta, a Wilmington, Mass., native, is in his second season with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan.
Listed at 5-11, 175 pounds, the 19-year-old delivered a dozen points (2-10-12) for his club last year in 45 games. Malatesta also appeared in five playoff games as the Titan won the QMJHL championship and 2018 Memorial Cup. Through his first 18 contests this season, he has two goals and four helpers.
Another player who’ll be seeking to sign a professional contract after this season is Malatesta’s teammate, Avon Old Farms product Liam Murphy. The left wing from Killingworth, Conn., who will celebrate his 21st birthday on Jan. 20, is in his fifth season in the QMJHL and second with the Titan.
After scoring 60 points (27-33-60) in 176 games across three seasons with Moncton, Murphy enjoyed a career season in 2017-18 with Acadie-Bathurst, notching career highs in goals (20) and points (38) in 65 games. His 18 assists fell one short of his career high of 19. He added 10 points (4-6-10) in 20 playoff games.
Murphy, 6-1, 214 pounds, has 11 points (8-3-11) in 26 contests this season.
Rounding out the QMJHL New Englanders is rookie goalie Tyriq Outen. Born in Tampa, Outen, 18, played the past two seasons with the South Shore Kings and entered the 2018 NHL draft ranked No. 19 among North American goaltenders by NHL Central Scouting. Outen, 6-3, 180 pounds, went undrafted and now in his first season with Acadie-Bathurst he’s simply working to regain his form, as he’s 0-9-0 with a 5.70 goals-against average and .868 save percentage in 15 games.
If he is able to turn things around, perhaps he’ll be able to one day look back on his QMJHL experience and label it just another stop on his trek to the world’s top hockey circuit, the NHL.
That’s the dream of every hockey player, regardless of which route they take to get there.
