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San Jose Sharks prospect check-in: OHL, QMJHL, WHL, USHL March

Posted on by Erika Towne

Playoffs are just around the corner and just about all of the Sharks prospects will have a postseason to look forward to. What’s more, some of them are setting records in their respective leagues or leading all other players.

Quentin Musty, for example, just hit the century mark in points, and had the best points per game average in the entire OHL. On the West Coast, Luca Cagnoni is having a year the WHL hasn’t seen from a defenseman in three decades.

Here’s a look at how the Sharks’ prospects are doing as we near the start of the postseason.

Mason Beaupit (G) – Langley Rivermen BCHL

Mason Beaupit continues to find his way with the Langley Rivermen, a team that recently clinched a spot in the BCHL playoffs. Beaupit has earned two shutouts with the Rivermen in the past month. He stopped 37 of 37 shots he faced on March 8 and stopped 27 of 27 shots on Feb. 24.

Beaupit currently carries a 9-14-0 record with the Rivermen and has a 3.10 goals against average and .904 save percentage. While his numbers are not great, it’s good to remember that he’s only 21 years old. At 6-foot-5, he has the size the Sharks are looking for in a goaltender. With the addition of several more developed goaltenders to the Sharks prospect pool in the past few seasons, the Sharks can afford for Beaupit to take his time in development.

Luca Cagnoni (D) – Portland Winterhawks WHL

Defenseman Luca Cagnoni is having himself a season. The defenseman recently recorded the first 90-point season by a WHL defenseman in 30 years. Cagnoni reached the milestone by scoring three points against Seattle on Saturday. With 90 points in 65 games, Cagnoni has bested his points per game total from last season. He’s now averaging 1.38 points per game compared to 2022-23, when he averaged 0.96 points per game.

Even though he’s piling on the points, he’s only third on the team in scoring. Cagnoni leads the team in assists with 72 so far this season. The Winterhawks have clinched a spot in the WHL playoffs, so Cagnoni will be playing “meaningful” games down the stretch.

Best of all, he’s being mentioned in the same breath as the Ducks’ Olen Zellweger, the Jets’ Josh Morrissey and the Golden Knights’ Shea Theodore. Cagnoni recently came in as San Jose’s eighth-best prospect on The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler’s prospect rankings.

“He has played a huge role on a top junior team for an established coach who has developed a lot of defensemen in two consecutive seasons, has legitimate playmaking ability, and distinguishes himself on the back of his smarts (he understands spacing and plays within the flow of play and often one step ahead of it), rounded skill and footwork,” wrote Wheeler.

Jake Furlong (D) – Halifax Mooseheads QMJHL

Captain Jake Furlong and his Halifax Mooseheads are gearing up for round one of the QMJHL playoffs. The Mooseheads finished second in the Eastern Conference standings and will play the Acadie Bathurst Titan in the first round.

Furlong is not a prolific scorer, but he has a respectable 30 points in 56 games. His role as a shutdown defenseman continues to earn him tough minutes on the ice, and he will be leaned on heavily in the playoffs.

Kasper Halttunen (F) – London Knights OHL

Kasper Halttunen and the London Knights are tops in the OHL’s Western Conference and will begin their chase for the Memorial Cup at the end of the month. Halttunen is on a team stacked with talent. The Knights recently became the first team in the OHL to reach the 100-point marker.

Despite scoring 61 points in 57 games, Halttunen is seventh on the team in scoring behind Oliver Bonk, Denver Barkey and Easton Cowan. Halttunen had three assists on March 17 and has 14 multi-point games this season. He continues to be a power play specialist, however, and leads the team with 16 power play goals, among the most in the OHL.

David Klee (F) – Muskegon Lumberjacks USHL

To the USHL, where David Klee and the Muskegon Lumberjacks are fighting to make the playoffs. Klee continues to build on his point totals this season. He now has 31 points in 54 games, including 13 goals.

The Lumberjacks have clinched a spot in the USHL playoffs in the Eastern Conference.

Quentin Musty (F) – Sudbury Wolves OHL

Welcome to the century club, Quentin Musty. The forward just hit 102 points with the Sudbury Wolves, scoring two goals and two assists against the Niagra Ice Dogs on Saturday. Musty is scoring at a torrid pace. He has 102 points in 53 games and leads the OHL in points per game with 1.92. He’s fourth in the OHL in points and fifth in goals with 43.

The Wolves have clinched a spot in the OHL’s Eastern Conference playoffs.

Brandon Svoboda (F) – Fargo Force USHL

Svoboda was traded to the Fargo Force from the Youngstown Phantoms earlier this year and has done well since joining his new team. The forward has 9 points in 15 games since joining the Force.

Svoboda now has 20 points in 40 games. The Force are first in the USHL Western Conference and have locked in a spot in the playoffs.

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