In The Cheap Seats

Final Grade: C-

Midseason Grade: C-

Season Stats: 66 GP, 6 G, 6 A, 12 Pt, +3, 74 shots

Minutes: 620 total (11^th among forwards), EV 7:54, PP 0:04, PK 1:26, ATOI 9:24

Splits:

1^st Half: 36 GP, 3 G, 3 A, 6 Pts, E, 43 shots

2^nd Half: 30 GP, 3 G, 3 A, 6 Pts, +3, 31 shots

Positions: RW (36 GP), LW (30)

Lines: 4^th line (54 GP), 3^rd line (10), 2^nd line (2 GP)

Linemates:

C: Guite (28 GP), Richardson (17), Stastny (9), Arnason (4), Laperriere (3), McLean (3), Turgeon (2).

LW: Laaksonen (20 GP), Richardson (6), Turgeon (5), Wolski (3), Svatos (1), May (1).

RW: Parker (10), Svatos (9), Klee (4), Laperriere (3), McCormick (2), Parros (1), Hejduk (1).

Career: Other than a career high in +/- (+3), no new personal bests were set.

Report: Rycroft is one of the tougher players for me to evaluate…On one hand, he gave the Avs pretty much what they expected…On the other hand, he just doesn’t bring a ton to the table…Is very energetic, and loves to hit…His 81 hits is 2^nd among forwards, just two less than Laperriere (in 15 less games)…Also willing to take a hit, which opponents obliged him on quite often…Had 3 fights on the season, and that was 2^nd most on the team…My favorite Rycroft moment: It’s the first game after the deadline as well as Scott Parker’s debut. The Avs are in Chicago and the Blackhawks score a goal just 1:11 into the game. Coach Quenneville immediately sends out the Parker, and everyone guesses a fight to rally the team is imminent. Sure enough, the puck drops, gloves fly and – what’s this? – it’s Mark Rycroft going to bat, engaging Danny Richmond in an entertaining battle…And, oh yeah, the Avalanche rallied and won the game 6-1…Number of post-deadline fights: Rycroft 2, Parker 0…Worked hard on every shift, but just didn’t have the finishing touch to convert scoring chances…Very reminiscent of Dan Hinote in that regard…Was a prominent member of the PK unit for the first 45 games of the season…Game 46 is when Ben Guite was recalled for good, and Rycroft spent less than 10 minutes on the kill the rest of the way…His total PK minutes for the season was 95:11.

Fast Fact: Rycroft is the only undrafted player to dress for the Avalanche this past season.

2007-2007 Salary: $550,000

2007-2008 Status: UFA

Outlook: Rycroft, a former University of Denver player, is a free agent this summer. He performed adequately in the 4^th line energy role this season, but I suspect the Avalanche might want to try some new players in that spot next season. Even among possible re-signings, UFA Ben Guite and RFA Cody McCormick would probably be better options for the team at this point.