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Carolina Hurricanes Prospect Primer: College Edition

By Alex Ohari

BOSTON, MA - MARCH 23: David Cotton #17 of the Boston College Eagles skates against the Northeastern Huskies during NCAA hockey against the Boston College Eagles in the Hockey East Championship final at TD Garden on March 23, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Huskies won 3-2. (Photo by Richard T Gagnon/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - MARCH 23: David Cotton #17 of the Boston College Eagles skates against the Northeastern Huskies during NCAA hockey against the Boston College Eagles in the Hockey East Championship final at TD Garden on March 23, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. The Huskies won 3-2. (Photo by Richard T Gagnon/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MA – MARCH 23: Northeastern Huskies forward Matt Filipe (17) scores first for Northeastern Huskies for a 1-0 lead in the first period. Boston College faces Northeastern University in the Hockey East Championship game at TD Garden in Boston on March 23, 2019. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA – MARCH 23: Northeastern Huskies forward Matt Filipe (17) scores first for Northeastern Huskies for a 1-0 lead in the first period. Boston College faces Northeastern University in the Hockey East Championship game at TD Garden in Boston on March 23, 2019. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /

Filipe and Zimmer

At Northeastern University, Matt Filipe looks to take a step in his senior season in hopes to earn a contract. The 67th overall pick in 2016, he hasn’t quite developed the way the Carolina Hurricanes had hoped. After a great 9-goal, 21-point junior season, Filipe has been rather stagnant in his progression since, and those totals remain his career highs.

He was a Captain at the Carolina Hurricanes development camp this past summer, so he’s a guy the team still has some confidence in. He’s 6’2″, 200lbs and a strong skater for a kid that size. He plays a hard-working two-way game, and can contribute off the score sheet when his offense is lacking.

Filipe, now a senior, will need a big season to prove worth of an entry-level contract. He’ll hope to breakout offensively, and get a chance to prove himself in the AHL with Charlotte. His NHL upside is likely in the bottom-six, but it’s anyone’s guess at this point if Filipe can make it to the big league. He’s still a ways away, and buried in a deep group of forward prospects.

Trending. The Powerplay is finally clicking!. light

Another prospect in desperate hopes of proving his worth for an entry-level deal, Max Zimmer is a guy who might already see the writing on the wall. For unknown reasons, he wasn’t at Carolina Hurricanes prospects camp this summer. He also hasn’t been overly impressive in college. He did manage to double his career high in points at Wisconsin last year, but still only finished with 18 points.

The X-factor of Zimmer’s game is his skating ability. He’s got absolutely blazing speed, and could be as fast as anybody in the Carolina Hurricanes organization. But aside from that, his game is void of any real defining aspects. He’s a hard worker, but has limited offensive upside and probably projects as a fourth line energy guy if he makes it to the NHL. Which is a big ‘if’.

First, he needs to prove worthy of one of the Carolina Hurricanes 50 contract slots, which means he needs a huge season at Wisconsin. Because of his aforementioned speed, Zimmer has been a fun prospect to keep track of, but this could be the end of the road for him. We’ll learn of his fate this coming spring.

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