Maybe controversial I know, but Habs fans around here act like Owen Beck is the only significant center we have in the pipeline. In all honesty, Oliver Kapanen (who scored a hat trick today at the World Championships for Finland), might be a better 2-way player.

While Beck has been playing in the OHL the past 3 seasons, Kapanen has been playing in the top men's league in Finland. This year as a 20 year old you could say he was pretty dominant, especially in the playoffs where he scored over 1.0 PPG.

If it's not 100% clear, Liiga is a much harder league to play in than the OHL.

Kapanen has recently signed a contract to play for his father's team in the SHL (the top men's league in Sweden often considered to be the top professional league in Europe other than the KHL). He's eligible to play in Montreal starting in 2025-26.

What do you think? Can Kapanen be a better prospect than Beck?

Don’t overreact. It’s against Great Britain

I see them as being close to even. Maybe one becomes 3C and the other 4C in the next few years. Not sure who would get the advantage (although Beck seems higher in the prospect rankings). Both should probably spend time in Laval first before trying to become an NHL regular.

owen beck MR FACEOFF. middle six center all day long.

he will be underappreciated and be super effective.. think of lehk

Kapanen has had a significantly improved second half of the season but there were some doubts earlier. At the end of the day I think if we’re legit contenders they should be our 3/4 Cs and they can battle it out for the roles.

Both are just names, every team has them. Most likely bottom F, if & when, if at all.

Owen Beck has probably the better 2-way game and more offense than Oliver, but both are great on faceoffs. I think Kapanen is more suited for a 4th line role, strong on pucks battles. It will be a nice internal battle for the 3C spot for them in a couple years.

His second half and playoffs in Liiga were impressive as well. He seems to have turned a corner and we are seeing sustained improvements in his offensive game. He's pretty intriguing as a prospect to be honest.

The Liiga isn’t a very good league and he is getting older. He will be a decent bottom six C but nothing more

All of Beck, Kapanen and Rohrer look like solid prospects, with about the same upside (3c) though I think I'd give Beck the slight edge

I have a deeper question : Are Beck and Kapanen our next Evans or could one of them turn into a Plekanec lite ??