Carolina Hurricanes Prospects: Jake Massie to Go the American Hockey Route
By Brett Finger
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 and beyond.
Player: Jake Massie
Position: Defense
Date of Birth: January 21, 1997 (18)
Birthplace: Hudson, Quebec (Canada)
Height/Weight: 6’2″/179 lbs.
2015-2016 Team: Omaha Lancers (USHL)
The Carolina Hurricanes selected prep school star Jake Massie in the 6th round of the 2015 NHL Draft, and the young blue liner will take the American hockey route instead of heading to Canadian Juniors.
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Last season, Massie broke out as a top player at Kimball Union Academy, a North East Prep School, this throwing him on the map for the 2015 NHL Draft.
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In 34 games with Kimball Union, Massie had 5 goals and 15 assists. He also played in 14 games at the Midget level with the Boston Jr. Bruins U18 team, tallying 11 points and racking up 20 penalty minutes.
Jake Massie was the top ranked New England Prep player in the 2015 NHL Draft.
In the 2015-2016 season, Massie will head to the USHL to play with the Omaha Lancers. He was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2015 USHL Entry Draft by the Lancers. His junior rights belong to the Saint Johns Sea Dogs of the QMJHL. The Sea Dogs drafted him in the 5th round of the 2014 QMJHL Entry Draft.
Following a year in the USHL, one of the top United States developmental leagues, he will play his college hockey at the University of Massachusetts. He has already committed to play at UMASS for the 2016-2017 season.
Jake Massie is a self-described offensive-defenseman that will take chances. He has good size at 6’2″, but is still slim at under 180 lbs. He has a whole lot of time to get bigger and stronger, and by next year, he will be playing against bigger, stronger, and more skilled players at the college level.
Carolina Hurricanes
Massie projects to be a project of a blue-liner. He is still incredibly raw both offensively and defensively. He is very athletic and can get up and down the ice very efficiently, which makes him a threat on offense and gives him the opportunity to be more aggressive as he can get back quickly.
His defensive acumen is still very under developed, but good coaching at UMASS starting in 2016 will help him. He will go against some solid competition there.
Down the road, Jake Massie projects to be a fringe NHLer with good offensive upside for the Carolina Hurricanes. That is for now, however. He is definitely a long-term project player that will take a lot of time, but if he is developed properly and the proper time is taken, he can be a quality player for the bottom of the depth chart at the NHL level, but we are talking six or more years down the road.
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Massie is a good prospect, and for where he was taken in the draft, he is legitimate and shows good upside, but it’s just a matter of how long it will take for him to get bigger and more acclimated to hockey at higher levels.