Barre-Boulet Primed For Success In Syracuse

WILKES-BARRE, Pa - Perhaps nobody understands Alex Barre-Boulet better than Syracuse Crunch head coach Benoit Groulx. He's coached the forward for so long now that he couldn't quite remember how long it's been.

"I've been coaching him for seven years... or six years - I don't remember. It's been a long time, so I know him," Groulx told InsideAHLHockey.com after last Saturday's come-from-behind 4-3 overtime victory - a game in which Barre-Boulet factored in on all of the Crunch's goals in a four-point (two goals, two assists) offensive masterclass.

Perhaps he's just become accustomed to it, but when ABB - as Barre-Boulet is commonly known among those in Syracuse - took over last Saturday's game, Groulx hardly reacted when asked about ABB's four-point performance.

"I've seen that before, and I know how tenacious he can be and it's when he's at his best that he's playing like that," Groulx said of Barre-Boulet's effort over the weekend. "He's attacking the puck."

Groulx wasn't the only one who noticed the 2023 All-Star forwards' strong weekend.

On Monday, the American Hockey League (AHL) named Barre-Boulet as its player of the week after accumulating seven points (three goals, four assists) in a three-games-in-three-nights set over the weekend.

After all, ABB has more than filled the nets during his tenure in the American Hockey League (AHL) - recording 277 points (108 goals, 169 assists) in 265 career AHL games, including 23 goals and 55 assists in 63 AHL games this season. Those 78 points have him one off the league's scoring lead held by Tucson's Michael Carcone.

Often times the reason why dynamic offensive players like ABB stick around in the AHL longer than most expect a player of that caliber to is due to deficiencies elsewhere such as play away from the puck, compete and consistency on a shift by shift and game by game basis.

While that may have been the case for ABB when he arrived on the pro scene in 2016-17, it is his tenacity on the puck that created last Saturdays overtime game-winning goal scored by Phil Myers.

ABB skated hard on Penguins defenseman Ty Smith in the Pens' defensive zone during the three-on-three Saturday, eventually forcing a turnover that he was able to quickly turn into offense - getting the puck to Simon Ryfors before he dished it to Myers for the OT winner.

For ABB, it's about leading the way offensively with the Crunch on a deep playoff run and being able to step up to score timely goals along the way.

But for his NHL aspirations it's about fine-tuning his game to become a more effective player in all three zones. It's something he's fully aware of at this point in his career.

"If you want to play at the next level you have to be good defensively," Barre-Boulet told InsideAHLHockey.com Saturday night in Wilkes-Barre. "Blocking shots, being in on the fore check... small details that maybe the average fan might not see, but the staff does for sure."

In fact, Groulx has ABB on one of the teams penalty killing units this season - a sign that the player has earned the coach's trust in defensive-minded situations.

"I've tried to work hard on that - since I got to the [pro game]. I think I've gotten better at that," Barre-Boulet said, noting that the time on the penalty kill has helped him to evolve his game in that regard.

"Everybody understands and knows that he's our best point producer," Groulx said of Barre-Boulet's offensive prowess at the AHL-level. "I think for [him], it's a matter of keeping things simple, making sure [he] competes and make sure [his] work ethic is good."