Graduated Prospect: Beckett Sennecke

By Thomas Harrington

The Anaheim Ducks surprised the hockey world by selecting Beckett Sennecke third overall in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. He rewarded that selection with a wonderful rookie season that saw him nominated for the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie.

Sennecke spent the entire year in the NHL, suiting up for all 82 games for the Ducks, one of three players to do that for Anaheim this past season. He scored 23 goals, 37 assists, and 60 points. He became the third Ducks rookie to hit the 60 point mark, joining Trevor Zegras and Bobby Ryan, while his 23 goals is fourth best among Anaheim rookies and his 37 assists are second only to Zegras.

This season, Sennecke finished third on the team in goals, fourth on the team in assists, and third on the team in points. Only Cutter Gauthier and Leo Carlsson scored more goals and points for the Ducks than Sennecke did this past season. Sennecke did some damage on the man advantage, recording one goal, 12 assists, and 13 points. His 12 powerplay assists were second only to Jackson LaCombe. Sennecke scored his first career goal in his first career game, and then scored his second goal in his second game.

The highlight of the season for him was when he scored a hat trick against Calgary, including the overtime game-winning goal. Among all NHL rookies, he finished tied for first in goals, second in assists, and second in points. Sennecke finished third in Calder Trophy voting, as defenseman Matthew Schaefer was deservedly named the league’s top rookie. Sennecke was also named to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team.

In the playoffs, Sennecke played in all 12 games and scored five goals and six points. The five goals were tied for the team lead with veteran Mikael Granlund. After recording only one goal in the first round series against Edmonton, Sennecke really stepped up against Vegas, with goals in four straight games. He’s the fourth rookie in the past 25 years to score a goal in four straight playoff games, joining Auston Matthews, Logan Couture, and Nicklas Backstrom. Sennecke also became the sixth player in NHL history with goals in three straight playoff games before turning 21, joining Sidney Crosby, Glen Wesley, Shawn Burr, Wendel Clark, and Paul Coffey.

A year ago, I based my expectations for Sennecke around the assumption that he would spend most of the year in the OHL. I thought he could start the year with Anaheim and then be returned to juniors to finish the season. As a result, the only expectation he met from a year ago was to survive late into training camp. Safe to say that despite my expectations about playing well in the OHL and making Team Canada’s World Junior roster not being met, this was a fantastic season for the young winger.

Sennecke has shown that he can be part of Anaheim’s present and future. What he needs to avoid next season is falling into the dreaded sophomore slump. He doesn’t need to put up better numbers than his rookie year for it to be a successful season, but he does need to continue to be one of Anaheim’s more dangerous players. A spot in Anaheim’s top six is all but assured for him, especially with Troy Terry starting the year on IR. Sennecke lined up next to Granlund and Alex Killorn to form a dangerous second line in the playoffs. He should also continue to be a major part of Anaheim’s powerplay going forward.

Sennecke has two years remaining on his entry-level contract, and he’ll be a restricted free agent when it ends. If he can improve upon a great rookie year over each of the next two seasons, Sennecke could be in line for a significant payday on his next contract. Even if he just becomes a consistent 20 goal scorer, he will likely still get a significant contract, in both term and dollar amount. However, if he doesn’t quite live up to his rookie year, he’ll probably be signed to a bridge deal at a cheaper value to show he deserves a big, long-term extension.

With the graduated prospects complete, I’ll now turn to the prospect updates, starting with forward Nathan Gaucher.

Related Articles:

Graduated Prospect: Tim Washe

Graduated Prospect: Ian Moore

Prospect Profile: Anton Wahlberg

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July 12th, 2026