Beckett Sennecke has been an underrated difference maker for the Ducks

One of the youngest players in the NHL has been a key part of a team’s quest to get back to the postseason.

The Anaheim Ducks are sitting atop the Pacific Division, and a cast of characters has been part of the team’s success. One of which is rookie forward Beckett Sennecke. The 20-year-old has come in to his first season in the league and lit it on fire. In 71 games, he has scored 21 goals and 34 assists for 55 points, placing him third on the team in scoring. Even with other young and rising stars in Cutter Gauthier and Leo Carlsson, Sennecke has managed to be an important cog in Anaheim’s success.

Many argue that, had New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer not been as dominant this year, Sennecke might be the frontrunner for the Calder Trophy, especially given how he has helped the Ducks close in on the team’s first berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in eight years.

On Thursday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Felix Sicard of Crash The Pond joined Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton to discuss how Sennecke has been a big-time player for Anaheim this year.

Felix Sicard: The number one thing is Beckett Sennecke. I mean, the fact that they got a 19-year-old rookie to come in and essentially produce and play at the level of a top-six forward as a rookie, that wasn’t expected. There wasn’t an expectation, really, that he was going to even be on the team to start the season. Maybe internally the Ducks believe that, but he needed time in training camp to really get up to form. I would say that if I had to pin it on one thing, it’s that they essentially got a top-six forward for free, and have nowhere to put them in their lineup. That usually makes a pretty big difference.

You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…