Owen Beck

July 2022 – The selection of Beck may not have received the fanfare of Hutson’s later in the second round, but it was an astute pick. Beck has a fair amount of stylistic similarities to Shane Wright but has middle-six upside rather than first-line upside. Both centers are intelligent, defensively responsible, excellent transition drivers, and the ultimate facilitators who make everyone around them better. Beck is significantly faster than Wright, is elite at face-offs, and is better defensively than Wright, but lacks the high-end offensive instincts, the elite vision, and the overall elite offensive toolkit. I like Beck a lot, he is a high-likelihood third-line center who plays a refined game that I think could translate to pro hockey within the next year or two quite seamlessly. Adding that in the second round is a great addition for the Habs. In order to unlock second-line upside, Beck will need to unlock a more calculated and consistent playmaking game built on the deception he flashes in transition and he will need to more consistently use his shot, which is a real weapon. On top of this, he needs to use his intelligence and timing to get into soft ice offensively more frequently. But Beck is already such a refined player that projecting him to an NHL role is a simple task, the big question that remains is how high up the lineup he will be able to shine and improve his teammates. His upside is a Phillip Danault-style facilitator with more speed, a better shot, and worse playmaking ability. Sebastian High

July 2022 – The Montreal Canadiens have selected Beck with the first pick in the second round of the 2022 NHL Draft, 33rd overall. Nick Richard

January 2022 – Owen Beck has been one of the Steelheads’ top players all season long and one of the highest scoring draft-eligible players in the OHL along with teammate Luca Del Bel Belluz. Denied the chance to play in the OHL in 2020-21, he came out of the gate a bit slow but the points have started to pile up and there has been consistent improvement in his game.

Beck is a reliable two-way forward with good speed, a well-rounded offensive tool kit, and strong instincts all over the ice. He maintains solid positioning off the puck, both defensively and offensively to support play. In the offensive zone, he takes intelligent routes when hunting space and has a tendency to stay inside checks to increase the likelihood of receiving a pass. Beck is a technically sound skater who employs good posture and clean crossovers to generate speed in transition. If opposing defenders don’t respect his speed, he has the hands to play pucks through or around them and the ability to do so with pace. He has dual-threat potential offensively with a hard, accurate wrist shot and above-average vision as a playmaker but it is the pace at which he plays the game that will help those skills translate to the next level. That said, he is prone to the odd rushed decision with the puck on his stick but that is to be expected for a young player in his first OHL season. Beyond his obvious offensive skills and responsible defensive nature, Beck excels in the faceoff dot which adds some sneaky utility to his game. While he may not be at the top of his class in any one area, Beck is one of the more well-rounded, versatile forwards in the 2022 draft and there aren’t any real glaring weaknesses in his game. There is certainly top-six upside there but even if he doesn’t reach his offensive ceiling, Beck should grow into a solid middle-six center at the NHL level. Nick Richard