Prospect Corner: Bean On The Move, Necas Steals the Show

CHL Trade Deadline News​​​​

During the CHL trade period leading up to the deadline, there was a ton of activity with pieces moving and teams jockeying to outdo their rivals to secure playoff position. Although Jake Bean was the only Hurricanes prospect on the move, many of the teams with Carolina prospects added to their squads over the past two weeks.

Bean was moved from the Calgary Hitmen to the Tri-City Americans in a move that netted the Hitmen picks and prospects for the future. With Tri-City, Bean will join fellow Canes prospect Morgan Geekie who is the leading scorer for the Americans this season. Bean has yet to play a game for the Americans yet, after finishing up his stint at the World Juniors last week.

The Kingston Frontenacs were one of the most active teams over the past 10 days, adding Max Jones, Cliff Pu, Sean Day, Gabriel Vilardi and Mitchell Byrne. Adding that type of talent not only puts the Fronts in the running as the most active team at the deadline, but also gives them an opportunity for a Memorial Cup berth. Goaltender Jeremy Helvig will be elated with the influx of talent and offensive ability acquired, which will take some of the pressure off of him having to be the first star each night.

As of now, every team in any of the three leagues of the CHL that has at least one Canes prospect on it is in line to be a playoff team when the season wraps up. This would bring valuable experience, as teams fight for a Memorial Cup berth across the CHL.

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Necas Steals the Show at the WJC’s

One of the most widely-held opinions during this year’s World Junior Championships in Buffalo was that some teams in the top ten of the 2017 draft may have missed the boat on Martin Necas. Carolina is very glad that they did.

Necas was one of the most, if not the most, dominant forward at the tournament as an 18-year-old, showing off his unique blend of speed and skill. He paired with 2018 draft eligible prospect Filip Zadina to bring the Czechs to a respectable fourth place finish in the tournament. His 11 points tied Team USA’s Casey Mittelstadt for tops at the tournament, and he was an inexplicable snub on the All-Tournament team.

Watching Necas play, it’s easy to see him fitting into the Canes plans as early as next year. The team is in dire need of dynamic scoring down the middle, and with the traits the 2017 first-rounder brings to the table, it’s hard to see him kept out of the NHL for long. In addition to the ability to drive the play, the Czech forward has shown willingness in puck retrieval and on the defensive side of the puck. This will only help him to the NHL faster.

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Bean Captures Gold with Team Canada

After a year of dwelling on what could have been at the 2017 World Juniors, where Canada took home a disappointing silver after a shootout loss to the United States, Jake Bean can add gold to his collection. The defenseman was the only of the three Canes prospects playing in the event to medal, and was part of a Team Canada group that played together as a collective whole rather than having one or two superstars carry them.

Aside from Nashville prospect Dante Fabbro, who battled injury throughout the tournament, all of Canada’s defensemen posted multiple points throughout the World Juniors. Bean finished the tournament with three assists and 12 shots in Canada’s seven games. He gave up power play time to 2017 fourth overall prospect Cale Makar, who was among the tournament’s best offensive producers, but Bean was steady in a supporting role. He still has some development to come, and it will be worth watching how his point totals fluctuate on his new Tri-City team.

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