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Carolina Hurricanes Prospects: Brock McGinn Ready to Seize a Role in the NHL?

By Brett Finger

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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.

Player: Brock McGinn

Position: Left Wing

Date of Birth: February 4, 1994 (21-years-old)

Birthplace: Fergus, Ontario (Canada)

Height/Weight: 6’0″/185 lbs.

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

While the Carolina Hurricanes are pretty thin in terms of good forward prospects, former 2nd round pick Brock McGinn provides a beam of hope at the age of 21.

More From Cardiac Cane – Canes Players with the Most to Prove

After getting drafted by the Hurricanes with the 47th overall pick in 2012, McGinn busted onto the scene in the OHL with the Guelph Storm, tallying 139 points in 126 games over his final two seasons with the Storm. He also donned an “A” on his chest for both the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 seasons.

Coming off of an 85-point season in the OHL in 2013-2014, McGinn had high expectations in his first full professional season last year. He didn’t live up to the expectations, but he showed signs of being a good player through all the adversity.

McGinn netted 15 goals and 27 total points in 73 games with a bad Checkers team a year ago. He was also a -18.

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Despite not putting up big numbers, there shouldn’t be much worry surrounding the young forward. He brought plenty of intangibles to the Checkers, and the club hopes he can bring it to the Carolina Hurricanes, hopefully as soon as this season.

McGinn hits everything in sight, despite his small stature. He is reminiscent of a Tuomo Ruutu in terms of his ability to get under opponents skin, and Chad LaRose in terms of bringing consistent work ethic, which is a combination that the Canes would be more than happy to take.

Brock McGinn can play great hockey in all three zones, which is something that Canes head coach Bill Peters demands out of his players every night. This player looks like a guy that Peters would love to have on his team for a very long time.

Related – Season Preview for Canes Top Prospect Noah Hanifin

The young wrecking ball is entering a big season in terms of development. He struggled to score last season in the AHL, and even went on a 29-game goalless streak, and he will need to ramp up the production in order to be a candidate for the NHL club.

McGinn has more than a legitimate chance to make the team out of training camp, especially if Ron Francis does not sign any other veteran forwards before the beginning of the season.

The Carolina Hurricanes have gaping holes on their second and third lines, giving Brock McGinn a big oportunity to impress the Canes coaching staff and earn him an NHL job for the 2015-2016 season.

If he doesn’t make the team out of camp, McGinn will go back to Charlotte and look to earn a callup under new Checkers head coach Mark Morris.

The Checkers look like a good young team on paper with guys like McGinn and Carrick potentially returning and others coming up the pipeline like Sergey Tolchinsky, Brett Pesce, Jaccob Slavin, and Daniel Altshuller among others.

Brock McGinn projects to be a pretty viable middle of the lineup forward for the future, and for a team like the Hurricanes with very little offensive depth, they hope the future is soon for him.

Best case scenario, this kid pops on to the scene as this year’s version of Victor Rask. A more likely outcome would be him starting the year in Charlotte, playing hard down there and improving his game little by little, and then getting a call-up or two at some point in the year.

For more prospect season previews for the Carolina Hurricanes, you can checkout the full playlist and everything prospect related HERE.

Next: Is Haydn Fleury Ready to Compete for a Spot in the NHL?

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