Carolina Hurricanes Prospect Report

The Carolina Hurricanes are off to a good start to their five-game home stand. Meanwhile, the Carolina Hurricanes prospects are off to terrific starts in the AHL, juniors, and college. Let’s take a look at some of the Carolina Hurricanes prospects.

AHL

• The Charlotte Checkers are 5-6-1 on the season after losing two straight games to the Chicago Wolves on home ice. The Checkers will get back on the ice on Wednesday and Thursday as they play two home games against the Hershey Bears. For more on the AHL afilliate of the Carolina Hurricanes, check out gocheckers.com
• Elias Lindholm was sent down to Charlotte last week. He has played two games and has yet to register a point. He is getting more ice time in Charlotte, which is important for his development. Expect the 18-year-old to see at least a few more weeks in Charlotte.
• Victor Rask has had a very good start to his first full professional season. He has 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists) in 12 games for the Checkers. He is also a plus three. The 20-year-old Swedish center has impressed, so we may be seeing him in a Carolina Hurricanes uniform sooner rather than later.
• Zach Boychuk, a name Canes fans have heard a lot of since he was drafted in the first round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, has had a good start as well. He has nine points (two goals, seven assists) in 12 games. He was very close to making the Hurricanes out of training camp, so he is still trying to prove that he is worthy of an NHL roster spot. Boychuk turned 24 in October.
• John Muse took over the starting job in Charlotte following the call-ups of Justin Peters and Mike Murphy. He has played very well. He has a 3-2-0 record with a .954% save percentage and a 1.41 goals against average.

Juniors

• Brock McGinn, second round pick in 2012, has been absolutely tearing it up for the Guelph Storm of the OHL. McGinn has racked up 33 points (16 goals, 17 assists) in 20 games. He ranks fifth in the OHL in point scoring. This is great for the Hurricanes and the future of the franchise. If the 19-year-old winger keeps this up, the Canes could be in store for a very bright future from McGinn.
• Sergey Tolchinsky has been just as impressive for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He has 33 points (14 goals, 19 assists) in 19 games. He is tied for fifth in scoring with fellow Canes prospect Brock McGinn in the OHL. The undrafted free agent from the 2013 NHL draft won OHL rookie of the year last year, and it is baffling to me how he went undrafted. The 5’9″ 165-pound Russian winger could be the next Martin St. Louis. The 19-year-old has similar size, and he was undrafted, just like St. Louis.
• What seemed like a weak goaltender prospect pool for the Carolina Hurricanes now appears to have promise. Daniel Altshuller, 3rd round draft pick in 2012, of the Oshawa Generals in the OHL has been one of the best goalies in the league this season. The 19-year-old has a 14-3-1 record with a .917 save percentage and a 2.59 goals against average. He leads OHL goalies in wins, ranks third in save percentage, and he ranks fifth in goals against average. Could Altshuller be the future for the Carolina Hurricanes at goaltender? Only time will tell.

College

• Phil Di Guiseppe, second round draft pick in 2012, of the Michigan Wolverines, has played well. He has seven points in nine games for the Wolverines. The 20-year-old winger looks to be a scoring forward in the NHL. The Hurricanes certainly hope that he pans out to be just that.
• Brett Pesce, third round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry draft, is a big defensive minded defenseman at the University of New Hampshire. The 18-year-old defenseman has two points in seven games for UNH. Big numbers would be nice to see, but Pesce biggest value is his defense. He has been doing well with that so far.

The Carolina Hurricanes should be happy to see very good play out of their prospects. Hopefully this will continue as these players look to reach their dreams and play in the NHL.