Beckett Sennecke Drafted 3rd Overall by Anaheim; Why His Growth Spurt Increased His NHL Potential

Sennecke once was a small, skilled forward. Now, he's nearly 6-foot-3 and has the potential to become a power forward with an elite offensive game

Sennecke is the first OHL player taken off the board. 

The Anaheim Ducks have drafted Oshawa Generals forward Beckett Sennecke in the the first round, third overall in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft.

Imagine developing and honing in on your puck skills and creativity as a smaller forward, then going through a nearly five-inch growth spurt in just two years. That’s exactly what has happened to Anaheim's brand-new A-level prospect.

Sennecke was drafted at 5-foot-10 in his OHL draft year as a 16-year-old. At the NHL Draft Combine earlier in the month in Buffalo, he was measured in at 6-foot-2.75”. And yet his skating has not taken a step backward, which is often the case when a player goes through a growth spurt.

Sennecke mentioned he noticed his sticks kept getting shorter and shorter as he went out for summer skates and laughed saying he doesn’t think his equipment manager was pleased about that.

His play in the second half of the season, in particular his performance in Oshawa’s run to the OHL Finals, boosted him up the draft rankings.

His unique growth spurt has him incorporating more physical elements into his game that he wouldn’t have been able to add before as a player under six feet.

Beckett mentioned at the combine that he was a big Patrick Kane fan growing up, which makes sense considering his ability to turn defenders inside-out with one quick move. But now that he's bigger, he likes to model his game after Nashville’s Filip Forsberg.

Has he embraced the power-forward role?

“I mean obviously I’m a pretty lean kid. I got to get stronger over the next two summers. I grew pretty fast and I’m still getting used to it. I think after December that’s when I started to really feel comfortable with my size and my coach definitely helped me along with kind of building that big players game,” said Sennecke.

Sennecke noticeably began to use his size to play a lot more physical in the playoffs and to drive the net more with the puck. He said that the extra range has definitely helped his puck protection skills.

The appeal is, can you imagine what kind of player he will be once he fills out his frame?

As a smaller player who loved to attack the middle of the ice, he had to be more weary and cautious due to his size. Now, he can lean on defenders as he drives into the slot or while charging down the wing off the rush.

This pick by … has the potential to be a home run.