Owen Beck is off to a good start with Laval
Owen Beck is a talent pivot who enjoyed success in the OHL, first with Mississauga and second with Peterborough. With those teams, he was a very good player. In 2023-24, he blossomed and started scoring goals at a much higher rate.
His combined numbers with Peterborough and Saginaw in 2022-23 were 34 goals and 47 assists in just 57 games. Many times in a player’s career they will make these jumps. His points per game were up in the playoffs too getting 14 points in 17 games. Then he turned pro and that would be the next test to see if he could score the same way in a tougher league.
Beck has been solid with Laval. His all-around play is really good. He gets 2:56 on the power play and 1:02 on the penalty kill. His puck pursuit on defense is good and he makes safe, smart clears.
His offense has been noticeable. His wrist shot is terrific. It’s got a lot of torque. Beck has a fast release and when he can get that extra space, he knows to move in the middle of the ice and the goalies can’t stop it while it’s going high into the net. He has four goals and 16 points in his first 21 games. He only has four goals because he’s only averaging three shots per game in his 16:21 of ice time according to InStat.
The fact that the Canadiens got him 33rd overall in 2022 was a value pick. I had Beck graded as a first-round talent. He’s 50% on face-offs and he has the look of a second-line center.
He’s only 20 and he should play the entire year in the AHL. Maybe next year they give him his second cup of coffee with the Canadiens and then send him back down to see if he can dominate there. Beck is physically stronger and with some fine tuning, he can turn into a very good NHL player.