Carolina Hurricanes Top 10 Prospects of 2015

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4. Jaccob Slavin

Position: Defense

Age: 21

Acquired: 4th round (120th overall), 2012 NHL Draft by CAR

One of my favorite players in the system for the Carolina Hurricanes is defenseman Jaccob Slavin, a product of Colorado College in the NCAA.

The Erie, Colorado native broke out in his freshman year at Colorado College, scoring 25 points in 32 games and winning the NCHC (National Collegiate Hockey Conference) rookie of the year award. He was also awarded with first-team rookie team and second-team all-star honors by the NCHC as a rookie in 2013-2014. Slavin was also selected to play for the United States in the U20 World Junior Championships He tallied 2 points in 5 games and was a +1.

His production went down a bit as a sophomore, but he was still given first-team all-star honors in the NCHC.

Slavin will make his transition to pro hockey next season. He inked an entry-level deal with the Carolina Hurricanes on July 1, 2015. He will likely start the year in the AHL with the Charlotte Checkers. He has great two-way ability, and he excels at making plays with the puck and skating smoothly with the puck on his stick. He is a very talented defenseman that has the potential to be a an affective NHL defenseman in the near future. He appears to be a steal of a 4th round draft pick.

NHL ETA: 2016-2017

Projected Ceiling: Second pairing two-way defenseman

3. Trevor Carrick 

Position: Defense

Age: 21

Acquired: 4th round (115th overall), 2012 NHL Draft by CAR

Trevor Carrick is the second-oldest of four hockey-playing brothers, and his hockey roots have been apparent over the past few seasons.

Carrick had an awesome final year in the OHL, scoring 51 points in 70 games split between the Mississauga Steelheads and the Sudbury Wolves in the 2013-2014 season. This offensive production was huge for him, and he was able to carry it over in a very impressive way into the American League last year.

The Stouffville, Ontario native had 32 points in 70 games played with the Charlotte Checkers last season. He also had 94 penalty minutes.

Trevor Carrick has a cannon of a shot from the blue-line. He can fire the puck past anyone, which can be a great weapon for any team on the man advantage. His overall offensive play has been very good. He also has the frame, standing at 6’2″, 184 pounds, and two-way ability to become a very affective NHLer. Though he does need to put on some weight.

What makes Carrick so good of a prospect is the fact that he transitioned so well to professional hockey last year with such an underwhelming team around him. It will be interesting to see if he can fast track to the NHL like he did to the AHL. If he can, he may be a part of the blue-line as soon as this year. The defensive competition will be very tough.

NHL ETA: 2016-2017 

Projected Ceiling: Top-four two-way defenseman and potential powerplay quarterback

2. Haydn Fleury

Position: Defense

Age: 19

Acquired: 1st round (7th overall), 2014 NHL Draft by CAR

Haydn Fleury was the 2nd best defenseman in the 2014 NHL draft, behind only Aaron Ekblad, the 2015 NHL rookie of the year.

Fleury has a great blend of size and skill which makes him a very good young defenseman. Haydn Fleury is listed at 6’3″, 203 pounds. He has NHL size already, and after an impressive prospect development camp, he may be a candidate to make this year’s roster with a good training camp.

Carolina Hurricanes head coach Bill Peters has raved about how improved Haydn Fleury is, saying he is bigger and much more confident. His confidence was pretty obvious when he made this sick move to beat a goalie in Canes development camp this week.

Haydn Fleury has skill, size, toughness, and solid two-way talent. With his good development throughout the past year, don’t be surprised if he sneaks on to the opening night roster.

The kid is very good and very sound as a young defenseman. He has a lot of work to do in order to reach his full potential, but so far, so good for the Regina, Saskatchewan native.

NHL ETA: 2015-2016

Projected Ceiling: Top-pairing two-way defenseman

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