Carolina Hurricanes: 5 top prospects to watch out for

5: Luke Henman – Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, QMJHL

Luke Henman was drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes in the fourth round (96th overall) at the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, using the pick the Canes acquired in the Marcus Kruger/Jordan Martinook trade. He’s a 6ft, c.150lb left-shooting center who is more a playmaker than a finisher.

His rookie season in the QMJHL saw Henman play second fiddle (or perhaps third fiddle?) to Alex Barre-Boulet and Alexandre Alain; in 61 regular season games, Henman posted 9 goals and 38 assists for a total of 47 points. Not bad for a first-year, third line center. The playoffs saw him really come alive however, posting 6-8-14 in just 20 games as his Blainville-Boisbriand Armada team lost 4-2 in the President’s Cup Finals to the Acadie–Bathurst Titan, who then went on to win the Memorial Cup. His stat line in that series was 2-1-3 in 6GP, with 2 hits and a 43% success rate on face-offs.

For a first-ever playoff series, he did exceptionally well; he’s come back this season to a much weaker Armada team and held his production steady in 60GP, improving to 12 goals but seeing a slight dip in assists with 32. While the Armada have made the playoffs in the Q, 16/18 teams do in the Q, so his 15th-ranked Armada will need all the help they can get from Henman if they’re to upset the bigger seeds. That same Titan team is dead last in the Q – the fact Henman has kept the Armada in with a chance is impressive.

Henman will likely spend another year in the Q before making the transition to a year or two with the Charlotte Checkers. Regardless of his gradual development, Henman figures to be a solid NHL player in the future and the fact that he has kept his production in line with last year, despite seeing most of his team’s talented players depart, really stands out. He’s a character guy, and someone who would surely benefit from spending time with the organization over the summer.