Henrik Rybinski: 2024 Annual Review And Forecast

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We continue our annual prospect review and forecast series with Henrik Rybinski, center for the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL). (You can access all our Capitals Prospect Reports and player analysis on our “Prospects” page in the top menu.)

VITALS

Rybinski, 23, is a 6’-1”, right-handed forward from Vancouver, British Columbia. He was originally drafted by the Florida Panthers in the fifth round (#136 overall) of 2019 NHL Entry Draft,but was not offered a contract. He was subsequently signed by the Capitals to a three-year entry-level contract for $925,000 AAV on March 1, 2022.

CAREER SUMMARY

Rybinski began his junior hockey career with the Medicine Hat Tigers for the 2017-18 season. He would record four goals and 13 assists in 77 games over two seasons with the Tigers before he was traded to the Seattle Thunderbirds on January 4, 2019.

Rybinski recorded 11 goals and 20 assists in 53 regular season games for a .62 points per game average in the 2019-20 season for the Thunderbirds.

During the 2020-21 season with Seattle, Rybinski led the team with 28 points (7g, 21a) in 23 games and was tied for 20th in the WHL.

According to Pro Hockey Rumors, Rybinski was in the Edmonton Oilers development camp in August 2021, and before that had been in camp with the Panthers. That’s when he transitioned back to center, the position he now plays full-time.

The 2021-22 season was Rybinski’s fourth and final season with the Thunderbirds. He was moved from the wing to center and recorded 21 goals and 44 assists in 47 games played for a 1.38 points per game average during the regular season. On April 10 he was named the Thunderbirds’ Most Valuable Player for the 2021-22 season.

Rybinski recorded four goals and 14 assists in 19 postseason games as the Thunderbirds advanced to the WHL finals. He would sustain an injury in the first game of the final series and miss the next three games before returning as the Thunderbirds fell to the Edmonton Oil Kings in the championship series.

The 2022-23 season was a mixed bag for Rybinski. He suffered an injury at the beginning of the season that caused him to miss the Bears first four games. Once he started playing, he began the season well, starting consistently for the Bears. As the season progressed, he became a victim of a numbers game and saw a few healthy scratches. He also suffered an injury and illness in December and January. He finished the year with five goals and 13 assists in 51 games played. He was a healthy scratch during the Bears run to the Calder Cup in 2022-23.

The 2023-24 season was another mixed bag for Rybinski. With the large number of forwards on Hershey’s roster, it was difficult for him to stay in the lineup regularly during October as he was healthy scratched five times. He played more during early November but then suffered an upper-body injury on November 15 and was out for a month. He played regularly in January and became a stalwart on the penalty kill. He finished the regular season with 5 goals and 11 assists in 52 games.

The 2023-24 postseason was a far cry from the previous season. This time, he was an important part of the Bears team that won their second consecutive Calder Cup. He scored 5 goals and recorded 4 assists in 19 games.

2023-2024 MONTH-BY-MONTH RECAP AND TREND ANALYSIS

The following is a compilation of our month-by-month prospect reports for Henrik Rybinski for the 2023-2024 season. You can find all our monthly prospect reports on our “Prospects” page in the top menu.

OCTOBER

The second-year pro skated in three games in October and was a healthy scratch for five. Rybinski is another player affected by the large number of forwards on the Hershey roster. He failed to register a point in his three appearances but did contribute on the penalty kill. Rybinski has potential but will struggle to make an impact without consistent ice time.

NOVEMBER

It has been a rough start to Rybinski’s sophomore campaign. He has found it difficult to stay in the lineup, often rotating in and out of the lineup. Then, the pivot suffered an upper-body injury on November 15 and has been sidelined since. Rybinski earned the secondary assist on Logan Day’s first-period goal against Bridgeport on November 4. That is his lone point of the season. The Vancouver, British Columbia native has played in only eight games this campaign.

DECEMBER

Rybinski returned to the lineup on December 17 after missing a month with an upper body injury and played in the last six games of the month. That is his longest stretch of consecutive games of the season, as he has suited up for just 14 games thus far. Rybinski has had a hard time getting into a rhythm this season and has two points to his name. The second of those came on a secondary assist on Lucas Johansen’s first period goal in Rochester on December 29. He does contribute on the penalty kill when in the lineup.

JANUARY

Entering the month having not played more than six games in a month this season, Rybinski played in 10 of Hershey’s 11 games in January. He started 2024 strong, scoring a goal in each of his first three appearances. The Vancouver, British Columbia native chipped a shot over a sprawled Spencer Knight of Charlotte for a shorthanded tally in the second period on January 3. The goal would prove to be the game-winning marker in a 4-1 triumph for the Bears.

Rybinski gave Hershey a 3-1 lead against Hartford on January 6. He came in on a breakaway and pulled the puck from his forehand to his backhand and put his shot by the blocker of Lousi Domingue. After sitting out on January 7, Rybinski was back in the goal column on January 13 when he flipped a shot by the blocker of Lehigh Valley’s Cal Petersen. He went scoreless in his next five games and his lone point the rest of the month was a primary assist on Chase Priskie’s first-period goal on January 28. The forward has been skating on the fourth line with Riley Sutter and has proven to be a big part of Hershey’s stellar penalty kill.

FEBRUARY

Injuries and callups have allowed Rybinski to play his natural position of center. After playing only 15 games through the first three months of the season, the Vancouver, British Columbia native has skated in 19 of the last 20 games for the Bears. Rybinski was held without a point through the first four games of the month, but then recorded an assist in back-to-back contests. He had the lone assist on Matt Strome’s opening goal in Toronto on February 17. The pivot set up Hendrix Lapierre’s shorthanded tally two days later in Belleville. Rybinski also picked up an apple on Strome’s shorthanded, empty net goal against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on February 23. The Vancouverite’s biggest contribution to the team is on the penalty kill and his role has increased on that unit with the absence of Riley Sutter. He has helped keep Hershey atop the AHL in penalty-killing despite the turnover of players on the unit.

MARCH

The second-year forward totaled four points in March. That matches the most Rybinski has scored in a month this season. He posted his first multi-point game of the season on March 22 in Ohio against the Cleveland Monsters. The native of Vancouver, British Columbia tallied his first goal since January 6 in the third period. He was trying to feed Bogdan Trineyev, but his pass deflected off Cleveland defenseman Samuel Knazko and went in.

 

Rybinski later earned the primary assist on Trineyev’s shorthanded, empty net goal. He has nine points on the campaign. Offense is not where Rybinski makes his biggest contribution to the team. That comes on the penalty kill. He gets consistent minutes on the unit and plays an important role on the kill.

APRIL

During April, Rybinski scored one goal and recorded two assists.  He had the primary assist on Pierrick Dube’s goal in a 1-0 win against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He scored his goal at 14:10 in the third period, increasing the Bears’ lead to 7-2 against the Iowa Wild. He was assisted by Ryan Hofer and Joe Snively.

He earned the secondary assists on a Logan Day goal on April 12 at 11:56 during the third period in a 4-1 win against Lehigh Valley.

POSTSEASON

Rybinski scored goals in each of the first two games of the Bears’ first-round series against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. In the first game, he scored the game-winning goal at 17:17 in the second period in a 2-1 win.  During the second game, he scored the team’s third goal at 4:48 during the second period in a 5-1 victory.

During the Bears’ second round against the Hartford Wolves, he scored no goals but recorded two assists in the first game on May 16 and one assist in the third game.

Rybinski scored two goals and recorded one assist during the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Monsters. His first goal came during the third game when he scored the Bears’ sixth goal during a 6-2 win.

He scored during the second period of Game 6 to tie the score at 1-1 in a game the Bears lost 3-2 in Overtime.

In Game 7, he earned an assist on Logan Day’s first-period goal at 19:41 in a 3-2 overtime victory. Rybinski missed Game 4 after he had been elbowed in the head last in the third game.

He scored one goal during the Calder Cup Finals which came in the third game of the series, a loss for the Bears.

For the playoffs, he had 5 goals and 4 assists in 19 games.

PLAYER FORECAST

Rybinski will likely remain with Hershey for the 2024-25 season and hope to grow in his fourth-line role with them, with hopes of an eventual call-up to the NHL.

By Diane Doyle

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