Carolina Hurricanes: Morgan Geekie Taking Strides in his Development

Carolina Hurricanes prospect, Morgan Geekie, has been making noise in the AHL of late. If he continues developing at this rate, could he find himself with the big club next season?

In the Carolina Hurricanes’ world, it’s become commonplace to discuss the lucrative prospect pool at the team’s disposal. According to The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler, the Hurricanes prospect pool ranks third in the league (paywall). That only includes the players under 21 years of age and those not already in the NHL.

Right-handed center, Morgan Geekie, placed 16th out of 20 Canes prospects on his list. I’m personally a little bit higher on Geekie, but I totally get why he fell that far. The Canes have a bunch of guys with raw talent and high ceilings that aren’t as far along in their development as Geekie. Morgan, meanwhile, is much closer to his full potential since he was drafted as an overage player.

I talked about Geekie about a month ago as a Charlotte Checker that we shouldn’t sleep on. For that reason, I’m not going to get too much into where he came from or what he accomplished prior to right now. The kid is simply impressing me with every game that passes and I would argue that he’s much closer to NHL full-time than not.

Geekie is currently riding a 13-game point streak for the Charlotte Checkers, which is a franchise record. In that time, he’s accrued 17 points (10 g 7 a). He has scored in his past five games, and he has three multi-point efforts in his past seven. He’s even in his +/-, but that’s because he sees power play time. The point streak has vaulted him into second in scoring on the Checkers.

Amazing point streak aside though, what are the qualities in his game that make me thinks he’s knocking on the Carolina Hurricanes’ door?

First and foremost he’s a right-handed center. I probably don’t need to explain that they’re coveted assets. On top of that, Geekie has good NHL size at 6′ 3″ and 192 pounds. He’s not going to get pushed around out there.

Geekie makes his living between the face-off dots because of his aforementioned size. Whether he’s creating a net-front screen or setting up for a one-timer, that’s where he likes to be.

However, that doesn’t mean he can’t shoot from outside the dots. He’s dangerous off of the rush, too. In particular, he has scored this goal shooting across the goalie many times this season.

Seemingly, Geekie prefers to take his one-timers from between the face-off dots. And as the clip above also shows, he likes to work from his natural side inward.

One of the only knocks on Geekie is his skating. There are some that don’t care for his top speed or his edge work. If you’re asking me, his knack for being in the right place at the right time makes up for what he may lack in acceleration. Check out this patience, net drive and tight turn. It’s not gorgeous edge work nor does he score, but it’s from his off-hand wing, and he manages a high-danger chance.

There’s a lot that goes into my belief that Geekie could be a Canes center as soon as next fall. There’s no guarantee that the team will re-sign Erik Haula, so there could be a spot in the middle six. He’s got a good shot, he protects the puck well on the cycle, he’s got the hockey IQ, he can play on the power play, and he would give the lineup a different look. He could be an ideal 3C in the NHL.

But, I also have to be realistic.

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As much as I like Geekie, his time with the Carolina Hurricanes could be short. Like I mentioned at the onset of this article, there are other centers behind him with potentially higher ceilings. Since he’s so hot right now, I could see the Canes using him as a trade piece for a team that might view his recent AHL tear as a sign of NHL-readiness. Consider also the value that comes from his winning pedigree as an AHL rookie.

I would love to see a Canes’ lineup including Geekie next season, but I also get that there are other prospects developing and that he may have trade value elsewhere. Until his future with Carolina is determined, I’ll keep shouting from the rooftops about the kid from the Tri-City Americans that has developed right on schedule.

Question for CC Readers: What do you think of Morgan Geekie as a Canes prospect? Does his skill set intrigue you?