Sercerchi was the straw that stirred the drink for one of the more effective lines in the entire tournament alongside Watson and Waterhouse, finishing with 6 points in 4 games and impacting the game all over the ice in a positive manner. As a centerman in the defensive zone he could often be found supporting the puck down low to help out his defenders by creating number advantages in puck battles below the goal line to gain possession and help initiate the breakout. He had plenty of instances of strong puck-carrying through the neutral zone, using crossovers to build up speed while demonstrating a long and powerful stride that made him difficult to knock off the puck at full flight. He was always looking to attack the middle of the ice on his puck touches in the offensive zone, often leveraging his puck skills to pull pucks around defenders to get off the halfwall and gain access to the interior. I thought he was equally effective off-puck in the offensive zone, demonstrating high-end intelligence on his routes to the front of the net which allowed him to jump on loose pucks just as they popped out and get chances off from dangerous scoring areas.

Sercerchi flashed some serious potential here at camp, flexing a toolkit that could allow him to be a high-end transition attacker in the future. For one, he has jersey flapping speed as a puck carrier, which allows him to consistently turn around defenders as he gains the line while his hands are able to move in conjunction with his feet to make plays at top speed. He could combine his agility and puck skills in the offensive zone to attack the middle of the ice from off the halfwall by pulling pucks around defenders while driving his feet. He made a series of skilled receptions in motion throughout camp as well, rarely ever having to lose his speed while corralling pucks that were in his feet or behind him.

Sercerchi was able to create offense in this game thanks to strong off-puck play, attention to detail and leveraging his foot speed to win races to loose pucks. I liked the way he was supporting the puck on the forecheck, often helping his team create numbers advantages down low and retrieving pucks through scrums before centering them to the slot. He earned himself plenty of good looks from the middle of the ice thanks to his timing and route-taking to the front of the net, as it always seemed like he knew when a loose puck would present itself in the slot so he could get a quick shot off. He scored his team’s third goal of the game late when he implemented himself backdoor and tapped home the puck into the yawning cage, another testament to his intelligent off-puck positioning.

Although he didn’t exactly dominate the scoresheet, you would be hard pressed to find a player who impacted this game more on a shift to shift basis. His ability to explode out of his turns while maintain control of the puck made him nearly impossible to contain along the perimeter in the offensive zone as he was consistently able to gains separation from defenders before leveraging his puck skills to work his way off the wall to the middle of the ice. These puck skills allowed him to carve through PEI’s defensive zone structure how he pleased, weaving through defenders with relative ease and getting the puck to the interior to generate good looks for himself and his teammates. His speed off the rush was too much for opposing defenders to handle as he was consistently able to turn them around, gain a step and either make a hard cut to the net or circle around the zone waiting for a play to open up. His off-puck details were very good as well throughout this contest, taking good routes to the front of the net to get himself into dangerous areas of the ice in the offensive zone and getting himself in good position to pounce on loose pucks.

Sercerchi was the straw that stirred the drink for his line alongside Waterhouse and Watson, putting up a goal and an assist in the process. His non-stop motor combined with his strong skating and puck handling ability made him a relentless transitional attacker, often opting to attack the zone with speed, push back defenders and create tons of space up high for his trailing options. He was creating tons of offense off the forecheck as well, using his feet to get in quickly on defenders to force turnovers and win possession to create sustained offensive pressure. His timing and route taking off-puck were very impressive as well, as he always seemed to pop up at just the right moments to pounce on a loose puck that popped up in the slot to get himself a good look. His skating allowed him to gain separation from defenders along the perimeter as well, as he used quick cuts and pivots to explode out of his turns and create space for himself in the offensive zone. He made a great feed on his teams 7th goal when he came in on a two on one, outwaited a sliding defender and executed a perfect cross-ice feed right on a teammates stick.