Carolina Hurricanes Prospects: Dennis Robertson Provides Defensive Stability for the Charlotte Checkers

Between now and the start of the preseason, Cardiac Cane will preview every Carolina Hurricanes prospect as they enter the 2015-2016 season and what we expect from them in the coming year.

Prospect: Dennis Robertson

Position: Defense

Date of Birth: May 25, 1991 (24)

Birthplace: Fort St. John, British Columbia (Canada)

Height/Weight: 6’1″/216 lbs.

2015-2016 Team: Carolina Hurricanes (NHL) and Charlotte Checkers (AHL)

Scouting Report: 

"The go-to defenseman at Brown during his college career Robertson logged heavy minutes in all situations. He has a big, hard shot, which makes him a threat offensively, particularly on the power play and is sound in his own end of the ice. He’s beginning to add more snarl to his game which is making him a more valuable defenseman. (HOCKEY’S FUTURE)"

Largely known as the “throw-in” player in the John-Michael Liles trade on January 1, 2014, Dennis Robertson brings stability to the blue line in the Carolina Hurricanes organization.

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A four-year player at Brown University, Robertson’s play got better and better with the Bears, and he established himself as a dominant defensive player in the college ranks.

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As a freshman in 2010-2011, Robertson was a member of the ECAC All-Rookie team. In his sophomore season, he was named to the NCAA All-Ivy League Second Team. In his junior season, he was a member of the NCAA All-Ivy League First Team. Then, as a senior, Robertson was a member of the All-Ivy League First Team again and was named the best defensive defenseman in the ECAC. The young blue liner was also the captain at Brown for his junior and senior seasons.

Despite all of his college accolades, Robertson wasn’t drafted until the 6th round (173rd overall) in the 2011 Draft by the Maple Leafs.

The Carolina Hurricanes signed Dennis Robertson to a three-year entry level contract in March of 2014, which officially put a start to his professional hockey career.

Robertson had a surprisingly good rookie season in Charlotte a season ago. On a team with an anemic offense, he tallied a respectable 3 goals and 17 points in 57 games played. He was also the only player on the entire Checkers roster to play over 21 games and finish with a positive plus/minus. He was a +1 player last season.

In an organization full of great two-way defensemen, Dennis Robertson shines as a stable, defensive minded blue liner with an incredibly powerful slap shot.

He projects as a bottom-pairing or 7th defenseman on the NHL level, but if he can work on adding more intangibles to his game, it will make him a much more legitimate prospect. He is also nearing the end of his “prospect days”. He will turn 25 this season.

If Robertson can add some more grit and nastiness to his game, he could resemble guys like Jay Harrison and Brett Bellemore from the past in terms of being solid in their own end with grit and occasionally providing some offense.

Though he shares very familiar qualities with Harrison and Bellemore, he doesn’t have the size of those players. He stands at 6’1″, 216 pounds. That is big, but he isn’t an oversized player by any means.

Dennis Robertson will very likely play another full season with the Charlotte Checkers in 2015-2016 after attending Hurricanes training camp in September. He will look to build off a very impressive rookie campaign and improve his all around defensive game. He is still a pretty raw player that could either see his potential rise or drop here in the next season or two.

He was a late round draft pick, so he isn’t a big time prospect, but he is a guy that could compete for a bottom defensive paring spot in the next few seasons as he continues to grow as a player at the American League level. He is one or two tiers below the likes of Trevor Carrick, Jaccob Slavin, and Brett Pesce.

Next: Warren Foegele Looking to Emerge as a Top Prospect for the Hurricanes