Welltime with Brandon Stanley’s latest ‘Checking In’ which will go up sometime on Wednesday, today’s Daily Cup of Joe has a similar futuristic theme considering the few players at the top of the list in Charlotte and at the same time considers if/where these players could fit right now as the Hurricanes enter the stretch run with room for improvement.
Alex Nedeljkovic
After a slow start in 2019-20, Alex Nedeljkovic rounded into form and is again making a claim to getting a shot at the NHL level. During the front part of last summer, he figured to be the Hurricanes backup for the 2019-20 season. But when Don Waddell dug up a chance to unload Scott Darling and his contract without buying him out, Nedeljkovic was suddenly third on the Hurricanes depth chart with James Reimer added to the mix. Ideal at least for Nedeljkovic’s development would have been an injury that got him some starts at the NHL level. But with the Hurricanes in a dog fight with no margin for error and both starting goalies healthy, Nedeljkovic seems destined to wait another year.
The situation will be interesting. Nedeljkovic will almost certainly be elevated to the NHL level for 2020-21 but without any NHL track record to show he is capable.
I am torn on his viability as a regular NHL goalie but at the same time all in on giving Nedeljkovic his chance. He very much has that ‘it’ factor that is common to great players and maybe even more common to the goalie position. Dating back to his days in juniors, Nedeljkovic has been a winner and has played his best hockey under the pressure of post-season and international tournament play. That ‘winner’ label is intriguing. But the flip side for me is whether he truly has the skill set. My impression of Nedeljkovic again in preseason was that he is incredibly noisy in his play. His size maybe forces him to be a bit aggressive and scrambly, but his volume of movement seemed to make him prone to overplaying situations and also potentially having holes as he moved.
As I said above, the team has to give him a shot at least as a backup, but barring an injury, I think it makes sense to push that to next season.
Jake Bean
Jake Bean is another player who has made steady progress such that an NHL audition seems imminent. For the longest time, I have been significantly less high on Bean than the consensus. With some time to acclimate to NHL speed, I think he could be a competent second unit power play quarterback right now. But because of the defensive part of the game, I still do not project him to be more than a third pairing defenseman who can play power play and help boost offense late in games when trailing.
The issue lies with his defense. The reason I put his ceiling lower than many is not so much because of how well he defends but more so just how. My read on him through the years without a significant change at training camp last fall is that to avoid making big mistakes he is just too passive. The opposite of players like Pesce and Slavin who aggressively take away time and space, Bean too much settles for being between the player and the net. The result at the NHL level if a limited number of big mistakes but also a situation where good NHL forwards just feast on the time and space. This might sound odd, but I actually think I would be higher on Bean if during his preseason auditions, he made more mistakes playing aggressively. That would suggest that he has the right approach but still needs work developing it.
As with Nedeljkovic, I do think Bean should get an NHL audition, but also like like with Nedeljkovic, I think it should wait until 2020-21. The help that the Hurricanes need on defense right now is another sound option for the top 4. Even if he does work out, that is not where Bean fits short-term. As such, I do not see Bean entering the NHL mix for 2020-21 unless an injury or two force it.
Julien Gauthier
Another high draft pedigree Canes prospect tearing it up at the AHL level is Julien Gauthier. After a strong preseason that nearly won him an NHL roster spot, Gauthier has had a couple sort NHL auditions during the 2019-20 season. He has not looked out of place at the NHL level, but significantly he was not a real difference-maker or offensive contributor either. But in only 41 games at the AHL level, Gauthier has scored a massive 25 goals and looked every bit an NHL-capable scoring power forward in the process.
The question with Gauthier has always been his play when he was not causing ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ with the puck on his stick. For a big body, he was not physical, and just in general he did not seem overly engaged when not trying to score. But in preseason, Gauthier demonstrated that he had at least made strides in this area being more aggressive hounding the puck on the forecheck and competing in the neutral zone and defensive zone. On a team that already has a few wings who lean offense over defense, Gauthier is maybe not ideal for the here and now. But as a forward with potential scoring upside, I would be inclined to give him another look at the NHL while Martinook is out of the lineup.
What say you Canes fans?
1) Of the big three Canes prospects at the AHL level, which do you think could fill a role and provide a boost (or at least should get a chance to) at the NHL level for the remainder of the 2019-20 season?
2) What do you predict for a longer-term future for an NHL career for each of these players?
3) Of the other prospects in Charlotte, which do you see as having a future at the NHL level?
Go Canes!
Geekie is streaky (he’s on a 14-game point streak), he may be sneaky good
Lawrence looks like a quality bottom 6 forward with more upside than backside
Kuokanen may be worth one more audition with the big club, we have plenty of “Finnish” but can do with more playmaking
Karski came in and has played very well at the farm
Prisky has been frisky, may be the right guy to call up. Any d man that is not severely visually impaired or under the age of 8 could do better than Gardner
Beaner has gotten leaner and meaner. Can he wake up, get a hold of his …. stick … and show us what he’s got?
I saw what you did there! 😀
After watching the Canes get dummied by St. Louis and Dallas what they need is muscle. The Canes, as currently constructed, are a Stanley Cup pretender. They need more muscle up front to deal with the teams like St. Louis, Dallas, and Boston. If Gauthier would play a physical game he would be very helpful.
From what I have heard Bean has turned up the work ethic and tightened up his end a bit. He probably is ready to go, but where do you put him? The PP isn’t the issue. Defense is the issue and do you really think Bean is going to help with that at the NHL level right away? On the other hand I’ve heard Priskie still needs work on the back end.
The rest of these guys are for next season or later. I do think the Canes need to upgrade their physicality. Bottom six guys like Neiderriter, Dzingle, and Huala need to be replaced with bigger, stronger players. I am not saying these guys aren’t useful players, but you aren’t moving out Necas, Aho, or Turbo.
1. Of the 3, either Bean or Gauthier (and Ned if there is an injurgy) – as you comment both have been trajectories in CLT this season.
Bean plays a much more aggressive game in CLT (you have to pick up AHLTV, Matt! LOL!) – he plays with swagger, closes gaps better in the d-zone and is Hamilton-like on offense. Why doesn’t this translate to NHL ice? – when he is up here he plays as if he is afraid to make mistakes.
I like your idea of bringing Gauthier back up while Martinook is injured, but if one of our issues right now is defense I am not sure that will happen.
I really think RBA is not going to want to support bringing up AHL players while the team is trying to figure out it’s current troubles while bouncing on the playoff bubble (particularly there will be help available at the trade deadline, presumably). I just don’t think he is going to trust them.
2. On the right team, they all have NHL potential. But we go back to last year’s stars on the Calder Cup team – besides Necas only Roy is getting NHL ice time on Vegas’ 4th line. Brown, Poturalski (Calder Cup MVP), Jurco, etc. – they are all in the AHL (Poturalski is injured but he wasn’t doing well). So AHL success isn’t projecting well.
3. Geekie can step up and play a Wallmark role in the NHL – responsible 2-way center for the 3rd or 4th line.
Lorentz is high energy and strong – RBA would like him, and I see him as the next Foegele or McGinn.
Priskie plays smooth as silk but we only have him one more year – I expect he plays for another NHL team (Francis would love him in SEA).
Luostarinen will bounce between the AHL and NHL – I expect both Forsberg and Forsling will continue to do so as well.
As high as I was on Kuokkanen earlier in his career, I am uncertain now – he has really come back from his injury last year and I expect he will see NHL ice, but I expect it will be in a limited role.
An interesting quote from last night’s Checkers game, given that we always talk about Gauthier’s size and strength and never his speed…
(CHeckers Coach) Warsofsky on Julien Gauthier
He has elite speed. It’s a sight to see. If you’re a fan, he’s someone you come and watch. He’s so powerful, he’s the fastest skater on the ice and he can make things happen when he has the puck on his stick.
I think there is a misconception about Brind’Amour and young players. He allows mistakes, but he wants to see the player make an impact. He has put up with plenty of mistakes from Svechnikov, Necas, and Foegele, but all three make an impact on the ice. In Gauthier’s appearances he has had little impact. Young players make mistakes and you live with them if they help the team. Gone are the days when the Canes would play a young player for months or years hoping they figure that out.
There is truth to what you say, but I have heard RBA express reservations – i think it was in regard to Necas or Gauthier right at the start of the season. He said even you make a pretty play one shift, you can’t come back and make a mistake the next. Svech seems to learn from every mistake he makes – and Necas is picking it up. But look how he managed Fleury last season.
He is only going to have people on ice he can trust – given where the season is right now, I doubt that will be an AHL player.
That said, it is also on the player. If players play the game afraid to make mistakes – regardless of the coach’s reaction – they will not only make different types of mistakes but take themselves out of their own game. I agree with Matt that has hindered Bean at the NHL level, whereas he plays much more freely in CLT. ANd same with Gauthier. And in this context I think it is up to the coach to let the player know they can make mistakes as long as they recover/learn (or whatever stipulation is necessary to let them stay on ice).
Good points, but Fleury was anything but impactful when he played last year. TvR was at least as good as he was and I would think that a rookie should need to be better to take a job from a vet.
The real exception is Gardiner. Most nights he adds little except mistakes. I get it that it’s the contract and if they bench him he’ll never get better or traded. Still, it is tough to watch.
This is the opportunity for replacement. I think 2 or 3 Checkers defensemen would do at least no worse than Gardner and the coach needs to send a message at some point.
Just because you were signed to a long-term deal with money doesn’t mean you are guaranteed a place in the lineup regardless of performance.
I am sick and tired of watching Gardner being a turnover machine and he has contributed precious little except the one 3 assist night last weekend, his turnovers caused at least one of the Dallas goals and led directly to the Staal penalty that in turn caused another goal.
It’s on the coach to send a message and this is the time to either execute a trade or, more likely, reward Charlotte players for the effort they’ve put in (they are 14 and 4 since early December) and show what they can do.
If you are the coach or GM you go tell the owner that you just wasted $16M on a defenseman you want to replace with an unproven rookie from Charlotte.