NHL Notebook: Bruins 2019 1st-round pick Johnny Beecher talks development, future after promising season at Michigan

Johnny Beecher is still a few years away from donning a black and gold sweater. But these days, his routine isn’t all too different from those up in the NHL ranks. 

Well, save for the online classes.

Back home in Elmira, New York, after the COVID-19 pandemic cut his NCAA season — and freshman year — short at Michigan, Beecher has had to get creative when it comes to keeping in shape and charting a course toward furthering his development as one of the Bruins' top prospects.

"Obviously it's really not ideal, but I'm never going to complain about being able to spend some time in my house and to be with my family a little bit," Beecher told BostonSportsJournal.com earlier this week.

Early-morning runs, afternoon weight lifting and an occasional round of golf are regularly scheduled entries on the docket for the B's 2019 first-round pick, who is focused on staying positive and poised despite a sports calendar riddled with uncertainty in the coming months. 

Despite the usual growing pains that come with making the jump up from the collegiate ranks, Beecher was satisfied with the production he put forward during his first season with the Wolverines. The 6-foot-3, 209-pound forward ranked fourth on his team with 16 points (nine goals, seven assists) over 31 games, including a highlight-reel tally in what was Michigan's final game of the season — a 3-0 victory over rival Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal back on March 7.

Despite a slow start, a young Michigan roster appeared to be clicking at just the right time — reeling off three consecutive victories going into a semifinal bout against Ohio State. However, Beecher and the rest of his teammates were unable to see the 2019-20 season through, with COVID-19 putting a halt to all sports shortly before their matchup against the Buckeyes.

https://twitter.com/umichhockey/status/1236463878805938182

"Obviously it wasn't the start that we wanted — went on a little bit of a skid there — but after Christmas everything was just kind of rolling for us there," Beecher said. "It was super exciting. At the end of the day, it is what it is with the season being cut short and everybody had to go through it. But it was disappointing because I think you could kind of tell that we were on pace to do something special there and I think individually, my game just kept improving and escalating throughout the season. I think, by playoff time,  I was playing some of my best hockey I ever have. So I was really pleased with how I kind of left things off there and I'm really looking forward to next season."

There's an awful lot to like about Beecher's game — a rare blend of power-forward snarl with the wheels that regularly left opposing skaters in the dust at Yost Ice Arena. It was one of the reasons why Beecher, primarily utilized in a bottom-six role on a loaded U.S. National Team Development Program (USNTDP) roster, was still viewed as a first-round selection when Boston came calling last June.

"I'd probably say 'powerful,'" Beecher said when asked to describe his game in a single word. "I think the biggest thing about me is just being a power forward and use my size and my skating to my advantage. So whether it's crashing the net or backchecking and making a hit on a guy to separate him from the puck, I really kind of take pride in the fact that I'm a 200-foot player and I'm gonna do whatever it takes to win."

While sharing minutes with the likes of Jack Hughes, Alex Turcotte, Cole Caulfield, Trevor Zegras, Matthew Boldy and others limited Beecher's minutes at times during his days with the USNTDP, Michigan coach Mel Pearson utilized Beecher in a variety of roles this past winter, especially as a net-front option on the power play.

Looking ahead, Beecher plans to divert plenty of time toward refining his small-area game — an added facet to his offensive repertoire during the scenarios in which speed and size can be negated. Honing those skills was a priority that the Bruins stressed to Beecher shortly before he departed his first development camp last summer — and remains an ongoing project as he works to round out his overall skillset down in the collegiate ranks.

"Just kind of close and in tight, putting pucks where they need to go on the net," Beecher said. "If I'm right above the crease or if I'm in a corner and I need to spin off a guy and make a pass. I think that part of my game has really started to develop over the last couple of months here.  I've even been working on skills that translate with that stuff to the ice out on my court here at home while we've been in quarantine. So it's been a big focus of mine and it's nice to see that that area of my game kind of come into fruition."

While Beecher noted that he and the Bruins keep in touch and chat every few weeks, his top priority remains getting back to Ann Arbor in the fall with a young Wolverines roster poised to take a massive step forward in the Big Ten. But, with the fears regarding COVID-19 still gripping the county, it remains to be seen just what college athletics are going to look like for the 2020-21 season.

Last week, University of Michigan president Mark Schlissel noted in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that there would not be any athletics if on-campus classes are not possible — adding that there is "some degree of doubt as to whether there will be college athletics (anywhere), at least in the fall."

For Beecher, whose rights are also owned by the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds, it doesn't do any athlete much good to dwell about possible worst-case scenarios — especially with news changing almost daily when it comes to projecting what the future holds in the time of the coronavirus.

For now, all the promising pivot is focusing on the steps he can take to further help the Wolverines — and eventually, the Bruins, down the road.

"I think it's just taking it day by day," Beecher said of his current mindset during the pandemic. "Like I said earlier, it is what it is and you know everybody's got to go through it. You just got to make sure that you're waking up every morning and you're doing what you need to do to make sure that, if there's a season next year, that you're ready come the first game and you're giving your team the best chance they have to win and compete for a national championship."

Angilly looking forward to a TD Garden return

It remains to be seen when exactly Todd Angilly will have the chance to belt out “The Star-Spangled Banner” in front of a raucous crowd at TD Garden again. But, at least for now, the Warwick native and official anthem singer of the Bruins is keeping busy during this extended stoppage. 

Along with his regular full-time gig as a parole officer, Angilly has also managed to keep his vocal cords fresh — performing requests on social media and even lending his services for Zoom meetings and other functions. Back at the start of May, Angilly also made an appearance at Burlington's Lahey Hospital — performing for staff and other first responders.