The 20-year-old rookie is entering Hurricanes training camp just days after competing at the NHL Prospect Tournament in Traverse City, where the Carolina squad finished in fourth place. A second-year vet of the Traverse City tournament, McGinn liked the way the group of prospects came together over a few games.
“I think our team developed as a team over the four games and learned the systems pretty good,” he said. “I think we were getting stronger as the tournament went on.”
He also saw it as a beneficial tune-up before making his way to Raleigh.
Coming into this year’s training camp, McGinn has a small sample of the professional game, having appeared in four regular season games and two playoff games with the Checkers in 2012-13. He then returned to the OHL for a fourth year with the Guelph Storm where he broke out offensively, netting career highs in goals, assists and points.
While playing at the pro level is the goal, McGinn sees that his return to juniors was advantageous to his game as he makes the leap into the pros.
“I definitely think it’s going to help a lot,” he said. “With that extra year you gain a lot of confidence and find out more what type of player you are and what attributes you can bring to a team. I definitely think that extra year helped me out.”
As for what he can bring to a team, the 5-foot-11, 185 pound left wing hopes to bring a well-rounded game that will contribute to victories.
“I think I can play a physical game, and [play] on the two ends of the ice, both offense and defense,” he said. “So I can definitely try to open up space for my linemates and help the team out.”
Now in training camp, McGinn is looking to show the organization that he is ready to be a contributor at the next level, whether that be with Charlotte in the AHL or with Carolina in the NHL.
The Hurricanes have an established top six, but the bottom six forward slots could be up for grabs by the time the season begins. The group is comprised of veteran grinders (Patrick Dwyer, offseason addition Jay McClement) and young yet unproven talent ( Zach Boychuk, Chris Terry), so if McGinn were to make a mark at training camp, it is feasible that he could force his way into the big-league lineup. And after the first two days, he seems to have already impressed Hurricanes coach Bill Peters with his performance.“McGinn is always around the play,” Peters told hurricanes.com. “He’s involved offensively, and he’s involved physically.”
If McGinn begins the season with the Checkers, he will immediately become a go-to player. His goal-scoring touch would help improve an offense that ranked 12th in the league in goals for last season, as well as soften the blow of potentially losing offensive powerhouses Boychuk and/or Terry to the NHL. McGinn has already shown that he can bring a physical presence to the Checkers, catching the eye of head coach Jeff Daniels when he knocked down the biggest player on the ice in his first shift during his brief stint with the team two years ago. Should McGinn start the year in Charlotte, he would be a force right away.
McGinn saw tremendous success last season in juniors, including leading Guelph to an OHL title and a berth in the Memorial Cup Championship final, where they fell to the Edmonton Oil Kings, but knows that making the jump to the professional level will present him with a whole new set of challenges, and going up against NHL players has shown him what aspects he needs to improve on.
“You definitely see how much stronger and faster they are and how much tougher they are on the puck, so you have to work on stuff like that,” he said. “Just make sure you’re getting the puck out of the zone.”
Heading into his rookie campaign, McGinn sees the work that needs to be put in to be an impact player, and will continue to use this training camp to improve his game. His plan to do so is simple.
“Keep working every day getting better.”
