There’s a lot of ways a player can stand out in the NHL Draft. Some do it through scoring, some do it through playmaking, some even just stand out for being big, mean and able to translate that to the ice.
Carter Bear is going to stand out because he is seemingly possessed by the spirit of ice hockey to make a good thing happen for his team, and he will stop at nothing to get it.
Who is He?
Carter Bear is a Canadian-born Center/Winger, who measures up at 6-foot-even, and weighs in at 176 pounds. He plays for the Everett Silvertips in the WHL; a Canadian-Junior league.
What’s he good at?
Goalscoring and Physicality.
While he’s only 6’0, Bear plays like he’s built like a Kodiak; getting involved physically and initiating forechecking through checking, and never, ever, ever stopping. Bear’s willingness to be engaged and stay engaged stands out because frankly, it stands out against a number of players who seem to have higher skill ceilings than he does end up with at least one allusion that they sometimes cheat for something; skating, shooting, defense, you get the picture. Bear on the other hand, goes at 110% and 110 miles per hour no matter what he’s doing.
That would be fun on it’s own, but all of that won’t matter if he doesn’t have skill, and buddy, Carter Bear has skill to spare. He’s got a powerful shot that he can wire through traffic directly to the net, or beat a goalie clean by getting a lot more power behind it than most goalies are ready for. But that’s during cycles; where he can be really dangerous is with his hands in transition; finding silky passes and maneuvers while being actively backchecked against in order to keep the puck moving in the right direction.
Bear’s base level of skill gives him a terrifying versatility; he’s a strong skater who can maneuver the puck and his stick with a delicate and silky approach, but if that’s not working, he’ll just immediately go into asskicker mode and try to bully his way to the net-front. His sheer relentlessness combined with his hand-eye makes him not just a major playdriver, but a one man momentum shifter when he’s on his horse, and he is almost ALWAYS on his horse.
What does he need to work on?
Using that physicality wisely.
While Carter Bear can be a bull moose heaving his way around his opponents in the WHL, that’s something that he can do at the WHL level without much concern because as an enormously talented player, he probably is just that much stronger than over half the WHL. Entirely possible at his age of 18. That’s not going to be true in the NHL in the slightest; where the game is much faster and professionals are built like rock walls that can skate.
Further, while he is really, REALLY good in most areas of the game, there’s rarely a place he can say he truly excels all the way. He’s physical, got a good shot, does a little bit of everything. Being a jack of all trades is good! But as the game gets faster, the hits get harder, and critically all the players get a lot better, he’s going to show that his energetic style can still keep up while also excelling at the base level hockey stuff.
On top of all of that…the scouts left just before he got a pretty nasty achilles injury late in the season; one that he did recover from, but it remains to be seen if there are lingering issues regarding it.
My Verdict
Carter Bear feels like the kind of dude that’ll become a local legend if he ends up a Kraken. You’d be able to see him within a reasonable distance of where people in the sound live, he is always involved in the play, and he scores a bunch. All the makings of a phenomenal talent in the NHL. The big question is if Bear can find some more speed in his game, and more tools in his work in tight during the backcheck to take him from a good potential NHL player, to an incredible NHL player.
If he’s available? Absolutely draft him!
Just remember, is feeling good about a high effort player with decent skill what this team needs? Or a player with