New Jersey Devils Prospects Update: Will Adam Beckman get his shot with the New Jersey Devils?

Adam Beckman has been a bright star on a fading Comets team. Will the winger get an opportunity in New Jersey?

The Devils, as currently constructed, are built to make a run. Good teams cannot wait for prospects to develop at the NHL level. See Alexander Holtz. So, players who may be ready for the jump will have to wait for their opportunities. One of those players waiting seems to be Adam Beckman.

Beckman Surging for the Comets

Adam Beckman is a 23-year-old center/winger who came over to the Devils from the Minnesota Wild in a change of scenery swap for Graeme Clarke. Beckman had been several call-ups for the Wild, totally 23 NHL games over three seasons. For the Iona Wild, Beckman had been a rather consistent offensive player, totally between 33-36 points for thee team in each of those three seasons. Something has popped for Beckman this season. Playing mostly on Utica’s second line wing, Beckman has amassed seventeen points in nineteen games, a 60 point pace, that leads the Comets team by two points over Nolan Foote and Brian Halonen in less games played. Prospect watchers have taken notice of Beckman’s play this season for the struggling Comets. Michael Derosa of the HockeyWriters wrote this article on Beckman’s surge.

The knock on Beckman over the past few seasons has been inconsistent defensive play and although that area has been improving, the 6’1’’ forward probably lacks the defensive abilities to play center at the NHL level. Whether Beckman’s defensive play has improved enough to be effective in an offensive-supporting role in the bottom six as a winger may be another story. With chatter about the Devils needing to secure more offense to spruce up the bottom six, Beckman might be an internal option worth looking at. Certainly, if the winger keeps up his play, he may be too difficult for the Devils to ignore.

Around the Pool

• Simon Nemec scored his first two goals of the season in Utica in a 6-3 losing effort Friday night in Rochester. Nico Daws stopped 31 of 36 for the Comets. Defenseman Daniil Misyul assisted on both of Nemec’s goals, his first two assists on the season. Here is a look at Nemec’s second goal.

• The Comets dropped another game Saturday night, this time 3-2 in overtime at home to Rochester. Xavier Parent and Brian Halonen were the goal scorers for the Comets. Goaltender Isaac Poulter stopped 33 of 36 earning third star honors in the losing effort. With the double duds, the Comets drop to 6-15-2-2 on the season. Those 16 points are tied with the Henderson Silver Knights for the 2nd worse team in the AHL, one point ahead of the Manitoba Moose. However, no team in the league has less wins than the six earned by the Comets this season.
• The World Juniors have started with Devils prospect Herman Traff playing for Team Sweden. Read John’s write-up here for info on how to watch. As of Sunday night, according to Elite Prospects, Traff is one of only two players on Team Sweden to be held pointless so far in their first three games of the tournament.
• I know how some people feel about plus minus as a stat, but when someone who was hyped up at the start of the season is worst on the team with a -12 forcing a demotion to the fourth line after a demotion to their team’s ECHL something feels wrong.
• Speaking of the Adirondack Thunder, much like the Utica Comets, the goaltending has had some struggles early on this season. Although Jeremy Brodeur (3.21) leads Tyler Brennan (3.28) slightly in GAA this year, both netminders sported SV%’s of .888 heading into this past weekend. Third string goaltender David Fessenden has played well in sport starts, but only has a small four game sample size. Brennan started strong this season, but has faltered as of late, so there is reason to believe the young netminder will turn it around.

Your Take

With many leagues at a break, it’s a short article this week. Let us know what you think and no matter what you do, have a safe, healthy, and wonderful new year.