C Beckett Sennecke - Oshawa Generals, OHL (2024, 3rd, ANA)

[Pavel Buchnevich]

So the first man wins theory?

I’m not sure I see the decent case for him later on either.

He’s not further along, he doesn’t play a more valuable position, and I’m also not expecting him to have more upside later on.

Can you give me a comparable for Sennecke that has him as a top 3 player in the 2024 draft eventually?

People mention Boldy, and to me that seems like the best case for Sennecke. Is Boldy even top 3 in 2019? I don’t know. Top 5 I’d feel better about for Boldy. And I’ll stress again, that seems like the best case scenario.

Maybe I’ll be wrong, but it seems like a reach to me at the current time. I’ve tried to give him the benefit of the doubt, and I’m not seeing Sennecke as worth that slot. We’ll see. No shade towards the kid or the Ducks.

 

[CheckingLineCenter]

People mention Boldy, and to me that seems like the best case for Sennecke. Is Boldy even top 3 in 2019?

off the top of my head- currently yes. Hughes Seider Boldy

Maybe I’m missing someone? Harley could be argued over Boldy? Maybe Protas or LaCombe go stratospheric down the road? Byram starts to play like he did in that Cup run? Idk. Looking like a really bad draft in hindsight.

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

I’m not sure I see the decent case for him later on either.

He’s not further along, he doesn’t play a more valuable position, and I’m also not expecting him to have more upside later on.

Can you give me a comparable for Sennecke that has him as a top 3 player in the 2024 draft eventually?

People mention Boldy, and to me that seems like the best case for Sennecke. Is Boldy even top 3 in 2019? I don’t know. Top 5 I’d feel better about for Boldy. And I’ll stress again, that seems like the best case scenario.

Maybe I’ll be wrong, but it seems like a reach to me at the current time. I’ve tried to give him the benefit of the doubt, and I’m not seeing Sennecke as worth that slot. We’ll see. No shade towards the kid or the Ducks.

To be fair... pretty sure PV/Madden have called it a reach on their own, and theyve said something on the lines of the pick being a projection pick.

Anaheim was in a position to go for a home run pick, we specifically needed winger help (pref Right hand shot) with a big frame that can score goals. We didnt really need dmen (specifically not LHD, which a lot were in the top of the draft).... I dont think catton really fits what PV wants from his team building perspective. From what ive read we were basically in a toss up between Sennecke and Demidov.

We were in a good position already having center depth for the future, and defensive depth... i think sennecke is a pretty good fit for us, and when he adds some weight/muscle to his frame hes going to be a force (especially if he is playing on the wing of carlsson/Gauthier)

 

[tomd]

I’m not sure I see the decent case for him later on either.

He’s not further along, he doesn’t play a more valuable position, and I’m also not expecting him to have more upside later on.

Can you give me a comparable for Sennecke that has him as a top 3 player in the 2024 draft eventually?

People mention Boldy, and to me that seems like the best case for Sennecke. Is Boldy even top 3 in 2019? I don’t know. Top 5 I’d feel better about for Boldy. And I’ll stress again, that seems like the best case scenario.

Maybe I’ll be wrong, but it seems like a reach to me at the current time. I’ve tried to give him the benefit of the doubt, and I’m not seeing Sennecke as worth that slot. We’ll see. No shade towards the kid or the Ducks.

I've been critical of some of Madden's picks but their philosophy is clear...they want to take the player who they think will be the best in 5 years. They did it with both Carlsson and Sennecke. There's still 4 years to go. But it seems your mind is already made up.

 

[gary559]

This is why we can’t have nice things

Anywho, excited for the finals. A bit of Sennecke and Dickinson hype

Reminder

 

[HeadLiceHatty]

The Sennecke pick will always be scrutinized by virtue of passing on Demidov. Hopefully the Ducks made the right pick but it's a fair debate at this point. The Ducks also took grief for picking Carlsson over Fantilli and so far that's probably a wash but Carlsson has a ton of runway left to improve. I'd be happy if the Sennecke pick turned out the same and both he and Demidov became 1st line wingers. It's definitely possible.

I think the pick is fine, I’d prefer Sennecke over Demidov, the same warts Demidov had as a prospect are showing the NHL. He lacks the quick decision making to effective 5 on 5, his skating stride and straight line speed is really bad, I don’t see how you can fix his bizarre stride. I’d much rather have Sennecke and if he hits he’ll be a more effective player. But I guess we’ll have to see how it plays out. I’ll take the potential effective 5v5 guy over the PP merchant.

 

[PAZ]

Has he taken real steps since last season? I don’t see much progress.

Not to say he’s doing poorly, but has he continued the trajectory of the second half of last season?

If Sennecke is what you suggest, I hope he can show that in the NHL next year because I promise you there will be three or four from this draft picked in the top 15 that are top of the lineup players by then.

Sennecke will need to do that to keep pace. Not to hate on him or the Ducks, but I’ve kept an open mind on this selection and I’m just not seeing how he’s going to fulfill the 3OA slot he got.

Weird take. Sennecke was always considered a project. Makar was still in college while Petttersson, Heiskanen, and Hischier were playing top line minutes in their D+2 year.

With young players production matters and I get there are different expectations with the 3rd OV pick. But players with a bigger frame like Byfield, Sennecke get a longer leash because they generally take longer to develop.

If Sennecke is still clearly behind the pack by their D+5 year then you'll have a strong argument it was a poor pick. You can argue it's unlikely that Sennecke hits his potential, but if he does he's a unicorn.

 

[gary559]

Weird take. Sennecke was always considered a project. Makar was still in college while Petttersson, Heiskanen, and Hischier were playing top line minutes in their D+2 year.

With young players production matters and I get there are different expectations with the 3rd OV pick. But players with a bigger frame like Byfield, Sennecke get a longer leash because they generally take longer to develop.

If Sennecke is still clearly behind the pack by their D+5 year then you'll have a strong argument it was a poor pick. You can argue it's unlikely that Sennecke hits his potential, but if he does he's a unicorn.

Anaheim clearly knew something everybody else didn't. He was projected to go 8-12 and given what we know now, would have been a major steal at that pick.

 

[tomd]

Anaheim clearly knew something everybody else didn't. He was projected to go 8-12 and given what we know now, would have been a major steal at that pick.

Grant McCagg (sick podcast and an ex-scout who is a big Montreal guy) was pumping Sennecke as a top 3-5 pick before the draft. Thought he'd be Montreal's choice is Demidov got picked earlier. The Hockey Prospect guys on the Sirius NHL channel were similarly pumping him before the draft.

In retrospect, I'm not sure there was a better pick to make at 3OA than Sennecke. Demidov quite possibly but that's a toss up. Dickinson has flashy numbers but also plays for one of the deepest teams in the CHL and LHD was the Ducks deepest prospect position. Other than those two? No one obvious IMO.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Weird take. Sennecke was always considered a project. Makar was still in college while Petttersson, Heiskanen, and Hischier were playing top line minutes in their D+2 year.

With young players production matters and I get there are different expectations with the 3rd OV pick. But players with a bigger frame like Byfield, Sennecke get a longer leash because they generally take longer to develop.

If Sennecke is still clearly behind the pack by their D+5 year then you'll have a strong argument it was a poor pick. You can argue it's unlikely that Sennecke hits his potential, but if he does he's a unicorn.

I get all of that. I don't see how with time he ends up the third best player from his draft.

When the pick was made and it looked like a reach, I gave them the benefit of the doubt that the second half of last season might've been what he really is (as opposed to the first half). The results we've seen this season basically suggest he was a combination of both. He wasn't as bad as the first half and wasn't as good as the second half.

Keep in mind wingers just have less value overall. They passed up a bunch of defensemen and centers to take a winger who is a project. So maybe with time that project yields a pretty good player. I think there's a decent chance, but I'm curious what you view as the best case scenario. Because as I mentioned when people say "give it time, he'll be Matt Boldy.", I'm not thinking that yields the third best player from the 2024 draft. Maybe that yields a player close to the third best player, but then again you'd think that's the best case from where he's at right now.

Can Sennecke be the best offensive player on a Cup winner? Because I think that's probably the overall level of the third best player from a draft. Obviously not all 3OA's pan out. You'll take a decent top 6 player at 3OA looking back 10-15 years down the road and there's a reasonable shot Sennecke ends up that, but I think with hindsight it's going to be hard to say he was the 3rd best player. And it's a hard standard to hold a team and player to at the top of the draft that they equal or outperform the draft slot, but I think overall it's hard to see the "reach" to take Sennecke as anything other than probably one that won't age well with hindsight, whether you hold him to the standard of actually being the 3rd best player in a draft (highly unlikely) or merely just being an average 3rd overall (a fair chance but not as much of a sure thing as you'd hope for at this point).

 

[FiveTacos]

In retrospect, I'm not sure there was a better pick to make at 3OA than Sennecke. Demidov quite possibly but that's a toss up.

Notable that two other teams also passed Demidov up. So 3 of the top 4 teams did not feel he was the 2nd best player available (and possibly not even 3rd or 4th).

Dickinson has flashy numbers but also plays for one of the deepest teams in the CHL and LHD was the Ducks deepest prospect position.

Buium was the betting favorite for the Ducks pick pre-draft ... yet he ended up going 12th, which tells you just how close those guys from 2-12 were. Weird year, in that picking 2 or 3 probably left you with a guy you'd typically get at around 5-7, but picking at 10-12 you also got guys who you'd typically get at around 5-7. A lot of very high potential guys, with distinct question marks or flaws. I kind of feel like in a few years we could end up with like 10 all stars or near all stars from that group ... or a bunch of busts.

Other than those two? No one obvious IMO.

I think Lindstrom without back issues would have been the obvious Ducks pick.

How will it turn out long term? Who the hell knows. I'm sure as hell not gonna try and make the call after just 1 year.

 

[frontsfan67]

Has he taken real steps since last season? I don’t see much progress.

Not to say he’s doing poorly, but has he continued the trajectory of the second half of last season?

If Sennecke is what you suggest, I hope he can show that in the NHL next year because I promise you there will be three or four from this draft picked in the top 15 that are top of the lineup players by then.

Sennecke will need to do that to keep pace. Not to hate on him or the Ducks, but I’ve kept an open mind on this selection and I’m just not seeing how he’s going to fulfill the 3OA slot he got.

Sennecke will be back in OHL next year. Fills out more, works more on defensive game and leads his team where he plays. Dominates. Gets on team Canada for WJC as a big time impact player. Traded at deadline and goes to a big time contender at trade deadline? (Kitchener/Windsor potentially?)

Ducks picked him for where he is in 5 years not 1 or 2. In 4 years now he should be around where Wyatt Johnson is now for skill wise- maybe a little better. Not a comparison but just saying he should be one of the premier younger players in the league like Johnson is.

Important to note also bigger/taller players usually take longer to adjust (look at Quinton Byfield) and all nhl teams including the ducks are aware of this. Sennecke as good as he is still is still very raw and has an insane amount of potential. Of all the young guys on the ducks he could end up being the best. Carlson could be best one all around but sennecke could be the one putting up all the points.

Also he’s a gamer- consistently elevates game in the big moments and in the playoffs. Ducks will be looking forward to that whenever the time comes to compete for the cup again.

 

[Static]

 

[PAZ]

I get all of that. I don't see how with time he ends up the third best player from his draft.

When the pick was made and it looked like a reach, I gave them the benefit of the doubt that the second half of last season might've been what he really is (as opposed to the first half). The results we've seen this season basically suggest he was a combination of both. He wasn't as bad as the first half and wasn't as good as the second half.

Keep in mind wingers just have less value overall. They passed up a bunch of defensemen and centers to take a winger who is a project. So maybe with time that project yields a pretty good player. I think there's a decent chance, but I'm curious what you view as the best case scenario. Because as I mentioned when people say "give it time, he'll be Matt Boldy.", I'm not thinking that yields the third best player from the 2024 draft. Maybe that yields a player close to the third best player, but then again you'd think that's the best case from where he's at right now.

Can Sennecke be the best offensive player on a Cup winner? Because I think that's probably the overall level of the third best player from a draft. Obviously not all 3OA's pan out. You'll take a decent top 6 player at 3OA looking back 10-15 years down the road and there's a reasonable shot Sennecke ends up that, but I think with hindsight it's going to be hard to say he was the 3rd best player. And it's a hard standard to hold a team and player to at the top of the draft that they equal or outperform the draft slot, but I think overall it's hard to see the "reach" to take Sennecke as anything other than probably one that won't age well with hindsight, whether you hold him to the standard of actually being the 3rd best player in a draft (highly unlikely) or merely just being an average 3rd overall (a fair chance but not as much of a sure thing as you'd hope for at this point).

The centers they passed on were: Lindstrom (missed the whole season), Iginla (got injured and also wouldn't have lived up to the #3 OV hype), and Catton (disappointing WJC and good chance he ends up a winger).

Defense is a more interesting argument since it's a more important position, but I also don't think any of Buium, Parekh, Dickinson, or Yakemchuk clearly separated themselves from the pack, certainly not to warrant saying they're clearly a tier ahead of Sennecke.

For your argument of Sennecke not being worth his draft slot, who else would be outside of Demidov?

 

[Gregor Samsa]

Someone here said they read his name as “Beckett Sneckett” and I can’t see his name as anything other than that. In fact, whenever I see his name, I can’t get the phrase “Beckett Sneckett” out of my head. I fear I am losing my sanity

 

[Hockey Duckie]

I get all of that. I don't see how with time he ends up the third best player from his draft.

When the pick was made and it looked like a reach, I gave them the benefit of the doubt that the second half of last season might've been what he really is (as opposed to the first half). The results we've seen this season basically suggest he was a combination of both. He wasn't as bad as the first half and wasn't as good as the second half.

Keep in mind wingers just have less value overall. They passed up a bunch of defensemen and centers to take a winger who is a project. So maybe with time that project yields a pretty good player. I think there's a decent chance, but I'm curious what you view as the best case scenario. Because as I mentioned when people say "give it time, he'll be Matt Boldy.", I'm not thinking that yields the third best player from the 2024 draft. Maybe that yields a player close to the third best player, but then again you'd think that's the best case from where he's at right now.

Can Sennecke be the best offensive player on a Cup winner? Because I think that's probably the overall level of the third best player from a draft. Obviously not all 3OA's pan out. You'll take a decent top 6 player at 3OA looking back 10-15 years down the road and there's a reasonable shot Sennecke ends up that, but I think with hindsight it's going to be hard to say he was the 3rd best player. And it's a hard standard to hold a team and player to at the top of the draft that they equal or outperform the draft slot, but I think overall it's hard to see the "reach" to take Sennecke as anything other than probably one that won't age well with hindsight, whether you hold him to the standard of actually being the 3rd best player in a draft (highly unlikely) or merely just being an average 3rd overall (a fair chance but not as much of a sure thing as you'd hope for at this point).

Ducks Asst GM Martin Madden on Sennecke after the 2024 draft via NHL.com

Guess the Ducks are taking a non-conventional route of seeing who that player will be into the future than near future. Sennecke grew from 5'10 to almost 6'3 between his D-1 and D+0 seasons. This year (D+1), he has grown another inch to become 6'4, but still retains the same weight. Until Sennecke stops growing taller, then his brain to body sync will still be a work in progress. AGM Madden denotes all the tools Sennecke has, but Sennecke still needs his muscles to catch up to his stretching bones.

Here is a picture of Sennecke in a Ducks' uniform after he was drafted. Now, add an extra inch without adding any weight.

AGM Madden identified that there are other prospects who are mostly developed physically and will produce accordingly. Sennecke was still growing in his D+0 season and his trajectory in production will be delayed. Thus, using the conventional D+1 review on Sennecke isn't a good marker. We have no idea if Sennecke is done growing taller after this season.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

The centers they passed on were: Lindstrom (missed the whole season), Iginla (got injured and also wouldn't have lived up to the #3 OV hype), and Catton (disappointing WJC and good chance he ends up a winger).

Defense is a more interesting argument since it's a more important position, but I also don't think any of Buium, Parekh, Dickinson, or Yakemchuk clearly separated themselves from the pack, certainly not to warrant saying they're clearly a tier ahead of Sennecke.

For your argument of Sennecke not being worth his draft slot, who else would be outside of Demidov?

To be honest, I don't think Catton had a disappointing World Juniors. He created a lot without scoring much, but that whole Canadian team sucked and couldn't score. He was one of their better forwards. To me that's better than a player who didn't make the team. I also don't see why he moves off center other than he's skinny right now.

I'm truly not sure what basis we're putting Sennecke in the discussion for the top of the 2025 draft other than "well, I like his potential, so anything could happen." He was not a top 10 scorer in the OHL by totals or PPG this season. He was literally outscored by two of those guys you name who played in the OHL that are defenseman. That does not suggest he's anywhere near their level. And I'm not saying scoring is all that matters, but it's not like Sennecke's value is in being a Selke caliber center either.

So in sum, I don't think there's much basis to have him in the same tier as those players. They are pretty much all going to be in the NHL next season, and a few of them might be legitimate Calder contenders because they are that good already. Will Sennecke even be in the NHL next season? On the evidence of this season, probably not. Maybe if you buy into the strong postseason, but we saw this last season and he again didn't continue that on into a dominant regular season.

To directly answer you, I would probably consider about 10 players before Sennecke, and really? I'm not exactly sure on what basis Sennecke is more advanced than another 10 kids in the middle of that first round range in what he is right now. I guess potential is an argument for him, but potential is subjective, right? Yeah, he could theoretically justify his draft slot, but right now? No, he's not there, and potential is in the eye's of the beholder. I really think there's not much basis to suggest he's seriously going toe to toe with the best players in the 2025 draft yet. We'll see if that changes over time.

 

[Sendhelp2Anaheim]

I get all of that. I don't see how with time he ends up the third best player from his draft.

When the pick was made and it looked like a reach, I gave them the benefit of the doubt that the second half of last season might've been what he really is (as opposed to the first half). The results we've seen this season basically suggest he was a combination of both. He wasn't as bad as the first half and wasn't as good as the second half.

Keep in mind wingers just have less value overall. They passed up a bunch of defensemen and centers to take a winger who is a project. So maybe with time that project yields a pretty good player. I think there's a decent chance, but I'm curious what you view as the best case scenario. Because as I mentioned when people say "give it time, he'll be Matt Boldy.", I'm not thinking that yields the third best player from the 2024 draft. Maybe that yields a player close to the third best player, but then again you'd think that's the best case from where he's at right now.

Can Sennecke be the best offensive player on a Cup winner? Because I think that's probably the overall level of the third best player from a draft. Obviously not all 3OA's pan out. You'll take a decent top 6 player at 3OA looking back 10-15 years down the road and there's a reasonable shot Sennecke ends up that, but I think with hindsight it's going to be hard to say he was the 3rd best player. And it's a hard standard to hold a team and player to at the top of the draft that they equal or outperform the draft slot, but I think overall it's hard to see the "reach" to take Sennecke as anything other than probably one that won't age well with hindsight, whether you hold him to the standard of actually being the 3rd best player in a draft (highly unlikely) or merely just being an average 3rd overall (a fair chance but not as much of a sure thing as you'd hope for at this point).

Sennecke is the highest ppg in playoffs on a team that might win the championship…. So maybe?

Sennecke is going to fill out a lot more than the other forwards in this draft…. There is a lot of potential with him as long as we’re patient.

Great shot, big frame, good skater, good play maker, great hands…. Bit of edge to his game that is only going to get better as he grows into his body…. Seems to play better when the games get more meaningful.

He has all the tools and potential to be a very good nhl player.

 

[frontsfan67]

Don’t even bother with the guy. Clearly has no clue what he’s talking about. Guy still has James Hagens #1 that’s about as much as he knows.

Sennecke was, and still is picked for where he is 5 years out. Reading is important. I don’t understand why we are comparing him to guys who were better than him last year and are still better this year- see where those players line up with sennecke in 4 years that’s the whole point.

Parekh should be a great offensive d man but his defence is atrocious I don’t even believe he is on the pk1 unit ON HIS OWN TEAM and Dickinson is great but projects as a top 4 d man- maybe top 2. Nothing super elite there. Dickinson is definitely more NHL ready but how high is his potential? Sennecke projects as a #1 scoring winger- think of a guy like mikko rantanen and look at his totals in the 5 years after his draft. Thats what the ducks are expecting with sennecke.

 

[SannywithoutCompy]

Don’t even bother with the guy. Clearly has no clue what he’s talking about. Guy still has James Hagens #1 that’s about as much as he knows.

Sennecke was, and still is picked for where he is 5 years out. Reading is important. I don’t understand why we are comparing him to guys who were better than him last year and are still better this year- see where those players line up with sennecke in 4 years that’s the whole point.

Parekh should be a great offensive d man but his defence is atrocious I don’t even believe he is on the pk1 unit ON HIS OWN TEAM and Dickinson is great but projects as a top 4 d man- maybe top 2. Nothing super elite there. Dickinson is definitely more NHL ready but how high is his potential? Sennecke projects as a #1 scoring winger- think of a guy like mikko rantanen and look at his totals in the 5 years after his draft. Thats what the ducks are expecting with sennecke.

No need to put down other guys, Parekh's defence is underrated. He's still going to be a beast. Dickinson I feel like will go the Chychrun route where you either trust the eye test + goal/assist totals or you trust the advanced stats as far as his impact goes.

Sennecke is a bit of a unicorn projection-wise. He makes a lot of rush moves as if he was still a smaller player but at the NHL level will have to learn to use his frame and make contact on power moves to be effective in the same way.

That being said, he seems to learn very quickly so I wouldn't put anything past him. He's a blast to watch (as is pretty much everyone from the top picks in that draft).

 

[TopC0rner]

Sennecke was, and still is picked for where he is 5 years out. Reading is important. I don’t understand why we are comparing him to guys who were better than him last year and are still better this year- see where those players line up with sennecke in 4 years that’s the whole point.

Parekh should be a great offensive d man but his defence is atrocious I don’t even believe he is on the pk1 unit ON HIS OWN TEAM and Dickinson is great but projects as a top 4 d man- maybe top 2. Nothing super elite there. Dickinson is definitely more NHL ready but how high is his potential? Sennecke projects as a #1 scoring winger- think of a guy like mikko rantanen and look at his totals in the 5 years after his draft. Thats what the ducks are expecting with sennecke.

There have been some solid performances in the playoffs from players in his draft. Still, I think Sennecke is right there with the others in his performance right now. I don't think he has a lot left to learn in the OHL, He has been a dominant player when needed.

I'm with you on Parekh... Great offensive talent but he would drive me crazy as a coach with the careless plays (giveaways) and mistakes on defense.

 

[Baksfamous112]

I love this pick. I can't put my finger on who Sennecke's game is comparable to because there aren't many of them out there. Maybe Tage Thompson?

 

[FiveTacos]

I love this pick. I can't put my finger on who Sennecke's game is comparable to because there aren't many of them out there. Maybe Tage Thompson?

Lanky, great hands, questions about if he can pull those moves in the NHL ... maybe a faster Corey Perry? Perry was on a much more stacked team though, so hard to compare numbers.

But without knowing his physical growth path, it's still very much projection. But the Ducks seem to like these types ... Carlsson is also skinny and not done growing vertically.

They may be right about him having the highest ceiling. It's also fair to call it a home run swing with a high probability of not panning out fully, but the Ducks have such a stacked pipeline I think a home run swing made sense over a more easily projectable but more conventional dude. Certainly over the D from last year, none of whom are a clear step above the guys they already have.

 

[frontsfan67]

They may be right about him having the highest ceiling. It's also fair to call it a home run swing with a high probability of not panning out fully, but the Ducks have such a stacked pipeline I think a home run swing made sense over a more easily projectable but more conventional dude. Certainly over the D from last year, none of whom are a clear step above the guys they already have.

Bingo. This guy gets it.

 

[tomd]

I love this pick. I can't put my finger on who Sennecke's game is comparable to because there aren't many of them out there. Maybe Tage Thompson?

A comparable is really hard to think of. I thought about Jack Eichel once Sennecke fully physically develops.