Canes top pick Noah Hanifin makes his first impression
Glen Tucker last saw Noah Hanifin on Saturday, after a two-hour session at Tucker’s “Shoot to Score” shooting academy in Boston.
Hanifin was about to leave for the Carolina Hurricanes’ prospects development camp. For the Boston College defenseman, the Canes’ first-round draft pick this year, it would be his first visit to North Carolina, his first time at PNC Arena.
“Noah said he couldn’t wait to get to camp,” Tucker said Monday. “He said, ‘I want to make sure before I leave there that they know who I am.’”
Tucker paused, adding, “I have a feeling he will.”
Hanifin made his first appearance on the PNC Arena ice Monday afternoon, wearing No. 5, as Canes coach Bill Peters put the prospects through various drills. He wasn’t the only first-rounder – defenseman Haydn Fleury was the seventh overall pick by Carolina a year ago.
“It was pretty cool, pretty surreal,” Hanifin said. “It was the first time putting (the jersey) on and going out and skating here. It was a really cool experience.”
Unlike Fleury, who plays junior hockey for the Red Deer Rebels of the Western Hockey League, Hanifin paid his own way to Raleigh. He’s a rising sophomore, and college kids aren’t allowed to accept travel expenses to NHL prospect camps.
Hanifin said he hopes to make a decision within a couple of weeks on whether he’ll stay at Boston College another season. The Canes want to sign him to an entry-level contract, and general manager Ron Francis said last week he hoped to have Hanifin signed before prospects camp.
“Obviously it’s a big decision, and you don’t want to rush anything,” Hanifin said. “What I got at BC this year helped me a lot, and I don’t want to hurt them in any way by waiting until the last minute to make a decision. I want to make the decision as soon as I can.”
The Canes would like to sign Hanifin, have him play in the Traverse City (Mich.) prospects tournament in September, then bring him to the NHL training camp. There’s always the chance he could play his way onto the Canes’ roster.
“He’s a big man who skates well and much like Haydn Fleury, his game is still evolving,” said Tony MacDonald, the Canes’ director of amateur scouting. “He has a chance to be a real horse at the NHL level for a long time and be an anchor on defense.”
Hanifin, who has a family crest tattooed below his right rib cage, appears to be well-conditioned at 6-foot-2 and 203 pounds. His game is based on instincts, movement and puck-handling, not bashing people.
“It’s obviously a big transition” from college hockey, Hanifin said. “To make the jump to the NHL, it’s a high level in every single aspect of the game. I think mentally you have to be a lot more focused. It’s a longer season from college, and that can be a tough transition for guys in college.”
Tucker said he first coached Hanifin at age 10. He also can compare him to some of his other “Shoot to Score” students such as defenseman Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins and forward Jack Eichel, the No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft by the Buffalo Sabres.
“He might be the most intense kid I’ve ever had,” Tucker said. “He’s the kind of kid who looks you in the eye, does everything you ask. And he always gives 100 percent.
“Young kids always ask what they have to do to make the NHL. Noah has that big, strong body and he gets away with some things because of that strength. But I told him in the NHL you don’t have time on the ice to fix your hair and tuck in your shirt. You have to have that quick twitch.”
Like most NHL hopefuls, Hanifin envisioned what it would be like on the day he was drafted, to hear his name called out at an NHL arena. But when it was time for Francis to announce the Canes’ selection, the mike malfunctioned.
Hanifin, seated close to the floor at BB&T Center in Sunrise, Fla., turned to his father, Bob. “Is that me?” he said, smiling.
But soon he was on the stage, wearing a red Hurricanes jersey, standing next to Francis and others in the Carolina contingent, thanking everyone.
“I was a little scared because I got my hopes up when Carolina went up there,” Hanifin said Monday. “I didn’t hear my name, but it worked out obviously.”
The Hurricanes are hoping everything works out – getting Hanifin signed, getting him started on his professional career, making him that defensive anchor.
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Hanifin Profile
▪ Hanifin recorded 23 points in 37 games this season, third-most among freshmen NCAA Division I blueliners. At age 17, he became the youngest player ever to don an Eagles uniform when he skated in his first game with Boston College in October.
▪ Internationally, Hanifin captained Team USA to a gold medal at the 2014 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, recording three points in six games, and also won gold with the U.S. at the 2014 Under-18 World Junior Championship, finishing tied for second among defensemen in tournament scoring with five points in seven games. Hanifin most recently skated for the U.S. at the 2015 World Junior Championship, registering two assists in five games.
▪ Hanifin spent the majority of the 2013-14 season as captain of the U.S. Under-17 team, leading all defensemen on the club with 33 points in 45 games. He also skated in 14 games with the Under-18 team, notching 13 points in 14 games.
NHL.com
This story was originally published July 6, 2015 at 8:11 PM with the headline "Canes top pick Noah Hanifin makes his first impression."