Team Snapshot - Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees


Team Snapshot - Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees

The Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, the CHL’s 2008-2009 franchise of the year with a record of 35-24-5, have wasted no time this off season by re-signing several key players including defensemen Jay Hardwick, Jesse Perrin, and Nathan Ansell, along with forwards Jesse Bennefield, and Aaron Lee.

Arguably, one of Rio Grande’s biggest moves was signing free agent forward Daymen Rycroft.  The 30-year-old veteran played in 51 games last season for Rocky Mountain and picked up 63 points (28-35-63), 23 points coming on the power play. Rycroft has played in Rio Grande before, but not since the 2005-2006 season when he was Daymen Bencharski.  The CHL All-Star is a solid two-way forward and will bring a significant amount of skill to the Killer Bee’s lineup.

Hardwick re-signed with Rio Grande on May 20th. The 29 year old defenseman proved ot be very durable playing in all 64 games on the blue line last season for the Killer Bees totaling eight points (2-6-8) with a +12 rating. Hardwick is a solid defenseman who brings excitement to the lineup and has quickly become a fan favorite.

Perrin was re-signed on June 3rd and adds intensity and grit to the Killer Bee’s defensive core. Perrin is just 22 years old and has great size at 6-1, 200 pounds. Perrin missed two months of the 2008-2009 season due to an injury, but still managed to play 34 games and accumulate 9 points (1-8-9). The defenseman might be best known for his hitting and excellent defensive sense of the game.

Ansell decided to re-join Rio Grande as well keeping the core nucleus in place. The 23-year-old defenseman had a solid 2008-2009 season racking up 24 points from the blue line (3-21-24). His 24 were the third most by a defenseman on the team last season.  He has proved to be a clutch performer when his team needs him as he got half his points last year on the power play (1-11-12) and also led the team in scoring in the playoffs with eight points in six games, all assists.

The Bees most valuable player during the 2008-2009 season, Jesse Bennefield, is returning to the Killer Bees in 2009-2010.  Bennefield, who turns 28 in July, led Rio Grande in goals (35), points (71), and +/- (+23). His 35 goals in 64 games were tied for third in the CHL.

After a solid rookie season with the Killer Bees in 2008-2009, 24-year-old Aaron Lee will be coming back to South Texas. Lee participated in all 64 games last year and finished fifth on the team in scoring and among the top 20 rookies in scoring with 37 points (14-23-37). The left winger is a hard worker on the ice and has had success on Rio Grande’s specialty teams as a top penalty killer.

The Bees won their first playoff series in franchise history a year ago and with second year head coach Chris Brooks re-tooling with a young, skilled bunch it appears that the best as yet to come.
 


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