Already past the midway point of the NHL and most other hockey seasons, Canes and Coffee is starting a series that aims check in on most, if not all, of the Carolina Hurricanes prospects playing below the AHL. Rather than trying to do research projects on players that we watch infrequently if at all, the aim is to leverage the viewpoints of guests who are hockey analysts or media who watch/track the players regularly. It is dependent on schedule and also ability to find qualified media/scouts who watch the players regularly and are willing to help, but the hope is to run these out in a series mostly on off days during the lighter stretch of schedule ahead in late January and early February.
First up is David Cotton who was selected by the Carolina Hurricanes in the sixth round of the 2015 NHL draft. He is currently having a solid freshman season at Boston College.
As a refresher, please also check out the “BACK TO SCHOOL” article on David Cotton from September 13, 2016 that included comments from Cotton’s 2015-16 USHL coach in addition to pre-arrival thoughts from BC Interruption.
Mid-season thoughts on David Cotton from Laura Berestecki at SBNation’s BC Interruption
Laura Berestecki (Twitter=@LaurBear90) is the managing editor at BCInterruption.com where she also covers hockey and women’s soccer. She also writes for the NWHL and covers Hockey East for SB Nation’s women’s hockey blog.
|
Canes and Coffee: What is David Cotton’s current role on the Boston College team? Laura Berestecki: Cotton has started a number of games this season and has consistently been on the second line. He’s currently playing with Chris Brown (brother of BC Interruption favorite / Charlotte Checkers’ captain Patrick Brown) and Austin Cangelosi. He gets significant playing time in all games for BC. Canes and Coffee: Through just over half of the 2016-17 Boston College season, how would you summarize and describe David Cotton’s play and accomplishments? Laura Berestecki: After a rough exhibition game, Cotton has developed into an important member of the BC offense. Cotton leads all freshmen on the team with 7 goals and 14 points and he leads the entire team with 4 game-winning goals. He has been great at sticking with the puck and fighting to keep possession and is developing into a very fun player to watch. Canes and Coffee: In seeing David Cotton for his first season in a Boston College uniform as a freshman, what jumps out about his game as on the path to NHL caliber? What areas of his game do you see room for improvement? Laura Berestecki: Cotton is definitely a player that will benefit from 4 years of collegiate development. He plays hard and has good hockey sense, but he needs to work on his stamina. He has improved, but he tires more easily than most of his teammates and can’t always play long shifts. Cotton also still needs to take a few steps to pick up speed while skating – BC has had players like this before that they’ve been able to develop into smoother skaters over 4 years. He’s a guy that will definitely become a better player with the consistent schedule and personalized attention/training of NCAA play. Canes and Coffee: After watching him for about half of a season, is there a former BC or even just current NHL player who Cotton reminds you of in terms of skill set and style of play if you project him forward 3-5 years? Laura Berestecki: In terms of NHL guys, the BC Interruption consensus is that he’s pretty similar to a Jimmy Hayes (except I see him scoring more pro goals than Jimmy Hayes does). A big player that is good at keeping on the puck, fighting those battles along the wall, and getting into position in front of the net to knock pucks in. His speed is going to be the determining factor in whether he becomes an NHLer or sticks mostly to the AHL. If he can get his speed and stamina up, I’d see him as a 3rd/4th liner in the NHL. Otherwise I see him as an AHL starter that will see occasional stints in the NHL. |
Check out video of David Cotton’s huge game-winning goal against Providence at Frozen Fenway back at BC Interruption (3rd video box).
Canes and Coffee extends a huge thank you to Laura Berestecki and BC Interruption for providing an update on Hurricanes’ prospect David Cotton straight from the Boston College campus and also for Noah Hanifin. 🙂 If you are Boston College Eagle-inclined, please check out BC Interruption for thorough coverage of Boston College athletics.
Go Canes!
