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2016 NHL Draft: Jake Bean, Nashville’s Next Great Puck-Moving Defenseman?

Posted on by Bryant Fair

In yesterday’s press conference, General Manager David Poile stated he was very happy with where they are in the draft. He said the players they have ranked from 10 to 17 could go anywhere in that range and that is a testament to the depth this draft has.

Poile also suggested (once again) the Predators were very interested in taking a defenseman with their first pick (17th overall.) Of the defenseman in the Predators’ range, Jake Bean is on average considered the best.

Jake Bean

  • Position: Defense
  • Shoots: Left Height: 6’0.75″ (via NHL combine)
  • Weight: 173 lbs (via NHL combine)
  • Team: Calgary Hitmen (WHL)
  • Hometown: Calgary, Alberta
  • Birth Year: June 9, 1998
    /

Jake Bean: Moving up the puck and the draft boards

Jake Bean has heavily risen up draft boards after showing off his fantastic skating, vision, and puck-moving ability alongside Philadelphia Flyers 2014 17th overall pick, Travis Sanheim. Bean was fantastic for the Calgary Hitmen and he even set the team record for the most goals by a defenseman in a single season with 24 in 68 games.

There is a reason he was able to make such a big scoring impact for the Hitmen. He is fantastic at using his hands, deceptive double clutches and head fakes, and skating ability to make room for his very hard and deadly accurate wrist and snap shots. If the opportunity is not there for his shot, he is also very good at finding his teammates. He is a complete offensive threat.

While Bean’s offense sets him up to be a potential top pairing defenseman in the NHL, his unpolished defensive game and lack of strength are the main things that are holding him back at this point. Developing such defensemen is not unfamiliar to the Predators, as you all know.

Jake Bean: Continuing a Tradition

If Bean were to fall to the Predators and Poile was to call out his name on the stage, Nashville would be getting a player that could become the next prodigy in their line of new-age puck-moving defensemen. He would be learning from the absolute best in Phil Housley, Roman Josi, Mattias Ekholm, and Ryan Ellis and that would set him up greatly for his future as an NHL player.

The downside to drafting Bean is no matter how well he plays, he will likely always be stuck behind Roman Josi and Mattias Ekholm; players who are pretty young themselves. Not only that, but Charlie McAvoy and Dante Fabbro (who we will profile later) are right shot defensemen and could eventually fill in for Shea Weber (but not replace him) when his career is over. With that said, if Bean, McAvoy, and Fabbro are all available at the 17th spot (a most unlikely of situaitons) and if the Predators’ scouting staff view Bean in higher regard than the latter two defensemen, then they should take him without question.

Quotes and Tweets

“He’s an averaged size defenseman with excellent offensive instincts and ability to read the game. He always seems to make something happen when he has the puck. wever, his defensive zone needs a lot of work. He’s averaged-size, so he really needs to add some size and bulk up. He’s a future asset. He’s two [or] three years away from playing.

“Whoever drafts him, definitely is going to draft him for the future.” – ISS Hockey Scouting Director Dennis MacInnis

Talking Points