Nicolas Beaudin (born October 7, 1999) is a Canadian professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the l ...

who is currently an

unrestricted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He was selected in the first round, 27th overall, by the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (N ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(NHL) in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

Early life

Beaudin was born on October 7, 1999, in

Châteauguay Châteauguay ( , , ) is an off-island suburbs, off-island suburb of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, located on both the Châteauguay River and Lake Saint-Louis, Lac St-Louis, which is a section of the St. Lawrence River. The population of the ...

, Quebec, to parents Stephane and Annie. Growing up, Stephane played a crucial rule in Beaudin playing hockey and coached him throughout his minor hockey career.

Playing career

Beaudin was selected 39th overall by the

Drummondville Voltigeurs The Drummondville Voltigeurs are a Canadian junior ice hockey team of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The franchise was originally granted for the 1982–83 season, and is based in Drummondville, Quebec, playing its home game ...

of the

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL; , LHJMQ), formerly the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). The league includes teams in Quebec ...

(QMJHL) in the 2015

Canadian Hockey League The Canadian Hockey League (CHL; , LCH) is an umbrella organization that represents the three Canada-based major junior ice hockey leagues. The CHL was founded in 1975 as the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League, and is composed of its three me ...

(CHL) Draft. He was awarded the Voltigeurs Offensive Player of the Year award at the conclusion of the 2017–18 season. He finished the season with 12 goals and 69 points in 68 games and was named to the QMJHL Second All-Star Team. Beaudin was selected 27th overall by the

of the

(NHL) in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. The second of Chicago's picks in the first round, Beaudin was considered one of the best

power play "Power play" is a sporting term used to describe a period of play where one team has a numerical advantage in players, usually due to a rule violation by the opposing team. Temporary numerical advantage in players during a team sport In several ...

options in the draft. On November 9, Beaudin signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Blackhawks. He returned to Drummondville for one more season before joining Chicago's

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

(AHL) affiliate, the

Rockford IceHogs The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...

. In his first pro season, Beaudin recorded three goals and 15 points in 59 games. He was recalled by Chicago after an injury to

Adam Boqvist Adam Boqvist (born 15 August 2000) is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected eighth overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2018 NHL entry draft. Playing car ...

and played his first NHL game on March 11, 2020 versus the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. The Sharks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Con ...

. During the 2021–22 season, Beaudin initially failed to make the Blackhawks out of training camp, but was instead assigned to the

taxi squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scout ...

during the

pandemic A pandemic ( ) is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has a sudden increase in cases and spreads across a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of individuals. Widespread endemic (epi ...

-shortened season. After Boqvist suffered another injury, Beaudin made the transition to the main squad and saw significant playing time with the Blackhawks, often paired with

Nikita Zadorov Nikita Sergeyevich Zadorov (; born 16 April 1995) is a Russian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was originally drafted by the Buffalo Sabres in the first round, 16th overall, in the ...

. On February 21, 2021, Beaudin scored his first NHL goal on

Joonas Korpisalo Joonas Korpisalo (; born 28 April 1994) is a Finnish professional ice hockey goaltender for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously played for the Columbus Blue Jackets, Los Angeles Kings, and Ottawa Senators. Playin ...

in a 6–5 loss to the

Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. The Blue Jackets compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern C ...

. Beaudin spent the majority of the 2021–22 season in the AHL with Rockford, putting up 16 points in 66 games and appearing in only two games with Chicago. Entering his fourth season within the Blackhawks organization in

2022–23 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

, Beaudin was re-assigned to continue his tenure with the IceHogs having fallen down the depth chart. Following three games with Rockford, Beaudin was traded by the Blackhawks to the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens (), officially ' ( Canadian Hockey Club) and colloquially known as the Habs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal. The Canadiens compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic D ...

in exchange for

Cameron Hillis Cameron Hillis (born June 24, 2000) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward for Kiekko-Espoo in the Liiga. He was selected in the third round, 66th overall, by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. Playing career Hillis p ...

on October 26, 2022. He was immediately re-assigned to Montreal's AHL affiliate, the

Laval Rocket The Laval Rocket () are a professional ice hockey team based in Laval, Quebec. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL) and Trois-Rivières Lions of the ECHL. The Rocket play ...

. He played 39 games with Laval, registering two goals and 25 points. On July 13, 2023, Beaudin signed a one-year two-way contract with Montreal. He attended the Canadiens' 2023 training camp but failed to make the team. Beaudin was placed on waivers and after going unclaimed, assigned to Laval to start the 2023–24 season. On January 29, 2024, Beaudin had his contract terminated following a mutual agreement with the Canadiens. Shortly thereafter, Beaudin signed a one-year contract with Czech-based

HC Sparta Praha Hockey Club Sparta Praha, commonly known as HC Sparta Prague, is a Prague-based Czech professional ice hockey team playing in the Czech Extraliga. The club has won four Czech championships (most recently in 2007) and four Czechoslovak champio ...

on January 31.

Playing style

Beaudin described his playing style as emulating

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

defenceman Jake Gardiner.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beaudin, Nicolas 1999 births Living people Canadian ice hockey defencemen Chicago Blackhawks draft picks Chicago Blackhawks players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Drummondville Voltigeurs players HC Kometa Brno players Laval Rocket players NHL first-round draft picks Sportspeople from Châteauguay Ice hockey people from Montérégie Rockford IceHogs (AHL) players HC Sparta Praha players 21st-century Canadian sportsmen