Montreal Canadiens' prospect Owen Beck received two rings on Saturday night before the Laval Rocket took on the Belleville Senators.
Montreal Canadiens prospect Owen Beck finished his junior career with a bang last season when he led his team, the Saginaw Spirit to a Memorial Cup title. The center was a big part of that championship and was even named the most valuable player of the tournament, gathering five points (including four goals) in as many games.
In the biggest game of his season, the Memorial Cup final, Beck scored two of his team's four goals and also made his mark on the game physically, sending Maple Leafs' prospect Easton Cowan flying on a massive hit.
On Saturday night, before the Canadiens' AHL affiliate Laval Rocket took on the Belleville Senators, Dave Drinkill, the Saginaw Spirit GM presented Beck and Belleville's Jorian Donovan with their Memorial Cup rings. As the tournament MVP, the Rocket's center also got a ring to commemorate his accomplishment.
Beck is also doing very well in his first season in the AHL centering the second line often flanked by Sean Farrell and Jarred Davidson, he has put up 12 points in 17 games (three goals and nine assists).
Over the last few days, I've seen a lot of comments about Jake Evans being surplus to requirements with players like Oliver Kapanen and Owen Beck waiting in the wings, but it's important to remember that veteran leadership is precious in a rebuild. Especially so when the said veteran has turned into a Swiss army knife who can play anywhere up and down the lineup.
While Kapanen played in the Finnish senior league and in Sweden's top league (in pre-season games), he was able to experience how high of a jump it is to the NHL. He shone in the pre-season, but once opponents were all NHL caliber players, the difficulty level will go up a notch and the same will be true for Beck when he graduates to the NHL.
