After an impressive junior career with the Western Hockey League’s Lethbridge Hurricanes, experience with Team Canada at the Under-17’s, 18’s, Super Series, and back-to-back gold medals at the World Junior Hockey Championships, Zach Boychuk, not surprisingly, has had high expectations entering his professional hockey career.

Since his introduction to the American Hockey League as a 20-year old in 2009, Boychuk has established himself amongst the top players in the league and only elevated his status as the AHL’s top goal scorer this past season.

Despite putting up career numbers with the Charlotte Checkers this season, Boychuk recognizes that there is still work to be done. Not only has he made strides in his game, he has also become stronger mentally and has grown as a person off the ice.

“I think anytime an AHL player gets called up and sent down, it’s a lot harder than people think,” says Boychuk. “It’s probably one of the most difficult things that I had to deal with.  Everyone wants to be an NHL player right when they are drafted at 18, but sometimes guys need some years to work on their game before they are ready to play at the NHL level.”

Boychuk understands and appreciates the process and difficulty towards becoming a full-time NHL player.  After a whirlwind season in 2012-13, spent between the Checkers, Carolina Hurricanes, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Nashville Predators, he felt as though this past season represented a fresh start in his career.

“This season was definitely a huge season for me personally.  After the year I had playing for a few different NHL teams and going back to the AHL, it was a bit of a wake up call for me.”

While Boychuk’s skill has never been questioned, he has been critiqued for his game-to-day consistency and the ability to put all of his tools together each and every night. That is his greatest takeaway and an area in which he is striving to improve after displaying it this season in Charlotte.

“I just need to go back to the basics and try to find my consistency.  I think that was my biggest problem my first three years and I just tried to crank up the intensity. That’s a word I really focused on this year.  I talked about that with my trainer in the summer so I attribute that to him.  It was definitely a huge year for me.”

Now 24 and vying for a regular spot in Carolina out of training camp in September, Boychuk has matured and understands the importance of professionalism in the way he carries himself.  “I became more of a professional this season and strived to bring that professional attitude to the rink.  You learn how hard it is to make it to the NHL and after playing in the AHL for as many years as I have, you have an appreciation for when you get called up.  You definitely realize where you started.”

With change in management and coaching in the Hurricanes organization, Boychuk is excited about the opportunity for a fresh start.  “I think it will be a clean slate for myself and the whole organization.  I think everyone’s looking forward to next year.  Personally, I want to come down to Carolina as soon as possible to start focusing on my training.”

In the meantime, Boychuk spent a few weeks after the season to lay low and enjoy his offseason, before getting back into the gym just over a month ago.  “I train with Jordan Eberle, Thomas Hickey, Braydon Coburn, and Mike Green at Crashed Conditioning in Calgary.  We’re usually there for a couple hours (each day) and we like to get a couple rounds of golf in during the week and then relax with my family on the weekend.  It’s nice to have a trainer that pushes us the way we do.”

Boychuk grew up in a household of athletes, with all three of his sisters participating in competitive gymnastics.  In particular, his twin sister, Corissa, won two gold medals at the Canada Cup in July 2013, and earned Double Mini Trampoline World Champion in 2010.  Despite retiring recently, Corissa and Zach have always had friendly competition and pushed one another growing up towards excelling in their respective sports.

“It’s kind of interesting the way gymnasts train and it’s almost harder work that hockey players have to do.  They’re training all year round, three to four hours everyday.  It’s a good battle between us, with her winning a whole bunch of gold medals and representing Team Canada the way she did, it just pushes both of us.  It’s definitely a great family to be apart of.”

After being assigned to Charlotte last fall, Boychuk was frustrated with his game and reached out to several of his coaches to regain his confidence and focus on returning to the NHL.

“I rebooted my career and restarted my game in total after talking with (Hurricanes Director of Forwards Development) Cory Stillman and my coaches in Charlotte, Jeff Daniels and Geordie Kinnear.  I was down on myself being one of the last cuts and I wasn’t sure if I’d ever make it back to the NHL.  They basically said they really believed in me and I had all the skills and tools, I just have to put the work in and get back to my intense game that they’re used to seeing.  A few weeks into the season I was recalled to Carolina and it really boosted my confidence.  It was a definitely a great revival for my career.”

Boychuk continues to train throughout the offseason in preparation for training camp this fall, and while he has faced some adversity throughout his career at the pro level, he is at a good place in his career and has confidence in himself after an impressive season.

“For me to have the season that I did I’m definitely getting a lot of recognition around the league and scouts are starting to notice, so I’m really happy with everything that’s gone on this year and really looking forward to next year.”