Today, Canes and Coffee’s “Midterms” series continues the check ins on the Carolina Hurricanes prospects below the AHL level. Following Jack LaFontaine at the University of Michigan, David Cotton at Boston College and Luke Stevens at Yale University, today’s edition stays in the college ranks and provides an update on Matt Filipe who is playing at Northeastern University.
Matt Filipe
Matt Filipe was selected by the Hurricanes in the third round of the 2016 NHL Draft. Filipe fits within a familiar draft theme as a forward with good size and speed and skating ability that also projects to be NHL-capable. Filipe fits the mold of a strong-skating forward with NHL size. He is currently playing in his sophomore season at Northeastern University.
Interview with Joshua Kummins from the New England Hockey Journal
About the interviewee
Joshua Kummins (Twitter=JoshuaKummins) covers both the Boston Bruins and Hockey East for New England Hockey Journal. The magazine features content on all levels of the game. College hockey is a big part of sports culture in New England, and Joshua notes that he has been watching the sport for as long as he can remember. Joshua has also written for SB Nation College Hockey. When not at the rink, Joshua covers all levels of baseball in the region for sister publication, New England Baseball Journal.
Interview on Matt Filipe
Canes and Coffee: Now in his sophomore season at Northeastern University what has been Matt Filipe’s role and how has he played thus far during the 2017-18 season?
Joshua Kummins: Filipe has been a bit quieter during his second season at Northeastern thus far. Although his stat line is just 5-8-13 in 25 games, he’s been a regular player all the way through on a team that is loaded with talent and currently stands right near the top of the Hockey East race. When he gets on the scoreboard, he’s made the points count; the Huskies are 3-0-1 when he scores a goal and 8-0-2 when he records a point.
He scored five points in the first two games of the season and has averaged a point per-game through the first eight, but went on an eight-game streak without a point thereafter. Since the start of the second semester on December 30, he’s recorded five points in nine games, including two on the power play.
One interesting note is that Filipe has actually seen time on all four lines and as part of 12 different combinations this season. He’s played six games with senior Nolan Stevens, who ranks third on the team in points behind senior Dylan Sikura and junior Adam Gaudette. Those latter two guys will be pros soon after their college careers end.
Canes and Coffee: Moving from his freshman to sophomore season, in what areas do you notice the most progress in Matt Filipe’s development from last season to this one?
Joshua Kummins: His point total hasn’t necessarily been there, but Filipe is going to give an honest effort every night and plays a hard-working game. He’s improved his plus-minus rating to +10, a mark that is second among the Huskies’ forwards behind only Sikura. The skill Filipe is surrounded by every day in practice can’t hurt anyone’s game. That number shows he’s doing the right things to help the team win.
Canes and Coffee: As Matt Filipe works to develop into an NHL player, what areas of his game still have room for improvement? What are his strengths at this stage of his development?
Joshua Kummins: This season, the statistic that shows there is room for improvement would be penalties as he has taken more (11) than anyone else on his team. None have come in the last six games, though, so that’s a good sign for his development on the fly. As far as strengths, he’s a strong skater and has been strong in the faceoff circle (51.5 percent), although he hasn’t played center more than once this season. And like I said before, he’s someone who makes positive contributions to the game even if the points aren’t flowing.
Canes and Coffee would like to extend a huge thank you to Joshua Kummins from the New England Hockey Journal for sharing his ‘from the rink’ insight on Carolina Hurricanes prospect Matt Filipe.
