While the Red Deer Rebels have been marred with inconsistency over the past 13 games, one thing has been constant: A Colton Bobyk assist.
The 20-year-old Red Deer product has been a staple of the Rebels’ blueline for the past two seasons and in the past two weeks, he’s been the focus of the entire WHL. Bobyk insists he isn’t doing anything special, but the 13-game assist streak is tied for the longest in the league this season (17 assists in 13 games since Nov. 4) and longest by a Rebel in the past 20 years.
“Keep playing,” Bobyk said about the streak.
“If I play well, points happen, but if I play well sometimes you don’t get points. I’m not going out looking for them, it’s just happening, guys are putting the puck in the net if I give it to them.”
The six-foot-two, 198 pound defenceman hasn’t just been piling up ticky-tacky second assists either, as 13 of the 17 assists he has collected during the streak have been primary or first assists.
“It’s just one of those times where I’m getting lucky bounces, pucks are going to the net … helping guys out,” Bobyk said.
In recent games, it appears Bobyk has solved the mystery that plagues many defenceman at the WHL level– getting shots through traffic and on net. He said there is no real secret to what has been working lately.
“The team just said make sure you get pucks through, and don’t get them blocked. I guess if you get pucks through to the net, then there’s a chance your going to get an assist, or it’s going to go in,” he added.
The recent string of assists has vaulted Bobyk into third on the Rebels in scoring with four goals and 25 assists for 29 points in 30 games.
He now also ranks fifth among WHL defencemen in points, just five back of Medicine Hat Tigers’ David Quenneville.
The 13-game point streak is the third longest in the league this season, behind Adam Brooks (19 games, 45 points, Oct. 12 to present) and Chase Harrison (16 games, 21 points, Oct. 8 to Nov. 22).
The point streak is the longest by a Rebel since Brett Ferguson had points in 16 straight games back in 2011.
The Rebels will also travel to Medicine Hat on Wednesday to take on the Tigers. Bobyk said it’s imperative for the team to find some consistency as a unit in the next six games before the Christmas break.
“We need to be more disciplined, stay out of the penalty box. I think we work hard, but we need to play a more 60-minute game, not take periods off. That has been killing us lately,” he said.
byron.hackett@www.reddeeradvocate.com