On the Forecheck interviews Taylor Beck
By Dirk Hoag, On the Forecheck – Taylor Beck was selected by the Nashville Predators in the 3rd round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft (70th overall), and since then has been lighting it up for the Guelph Storm of the Ontario Hockey League. With 25 goals and 40 assists through 41 games, he recently had two big honors come his way, which you’ll read about below.
To put Beck’s production into perspective, Scott Reynolds over at Copper & Blue put together the data on all the forwards taken in the 2009 draft, using the concept of NHL Equivalency to translate numbers from various leagues (Canadian junior, NCAA, KHL, Swedish Elite League, etc.) into what would be an estimate of NHL-level production. Despite being the 42nd forward selected in that draft, Beck is the 7th-ranked forward this season, with output that would translate to roughly Joel Ward’s level this year if he played at the NHL level (pretty impressive for a teenager).
Recently I spoke with Taylor about his success this season, and what the road ahead looks like for the 6’1″ winger.
Q: You were just named the OHL’s Player of the Week for the Guelph Storm, due in part to a 2-goal, 3-assist game against Sudbury on Sunday. Tell me about that game, it sounds like just about everything went right for you.
Beck: Our team heading in was struggling a little bit of late, we’d been playing a solid 40 minutes, but not the best 60-minute game, but we really came together that night. I played with some great linemates, who finished off a couple passes that I gave them, and it seemed like everything was clicking, so it was really nice for us.
Q: Did I read right that that 5-point game came on national TV? I’ll bet that was a thrill.
Beck: It’s always fun when it’s a SportsNet game all across Canada. For me, I like watching other teams play, it gives me a chance to see what I’m going to compete against at the next level.
