Not that anybody wanted him to change anything anyway.
"I just want to continue to try and play my game the way I usually do and be confident and just try to put myself in the best position to continue to improve and give myself a shot," Beckman said. "I think everybody has that same mentality. They're coming here to get a roster spot and do whatever they can to do that, and that's my focus too just to continue to try and improve and get better, be confident every day to put myself in the best position to do so."
Beckman has certainly done that.
As the Wild embarks on its fourth exhibition game on Wednesday against the St. Louis Blues, Beckman has gone from someone likely to begin the season in Iowa to a man squarely in the mix to make Minnesota's Opening Night roster when it drops the puck in Anaheim a week from Friday.
Beckman has played in two of the three preseason games so far, scoring two goals in the opener in St. Louis and another last Thursday in Colorado.
This off an excellent showing in the Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase last month, where Beckman was routinely seeing ice time with fellow top prospects Matt Boldy and Marco Rossi.
"I think that was a big thing for me this year was just talking with the coaching staff, just play my game and shoot the puck," Beckman said. "Growing up I've tried to score as many goals as I can. I think obviously it's very hard to do at the NHL level, so I'm just going to try and continue to improve and do what I can to hopefully make that happen."
More than just his ability to find the scoresheet, the 20-year-old Beckman has impressed the NHL coaching staff and his veteran teammates with his attitude.
"I love Becks. He's just one of these young kids that has come along and he's just infectious in the room," said Wild forward Marcus Foligno. "Very chatty, very talkative and I think it's just great. But not only is he talking the talk, he's walking the walk and that's great to see. He's really making a name for himself being noticeable this camp."
Foligno said it was Beckman's demeanor that caught his eye before his blistering shot.
"On the bench, I've turned around a couple of times because I'm the one usually doing the talking," Foligno said with a laugh. "And he's the one carrying the conversation. You don't get too many 20-year-olds with that confidence that have that chattiness, but he does."
That won't be changing anytime soon, Beckman says.
"I like to shoot the puck and stuff, but I like to be an energetic guy in the room, too, just trying to get everybody excited and happy to be out there and just make it fun," Beckman said. "That's kind of my personality."
One thing about Beckman's shot that has stood out since the first day of the prospect tournament has been his willingness to shoot.
It's not hard to imagine him ready to fire at will in a tournament where he's among fellow prospects. But that hasn't changed since coming to big camp, even when he's been on a line with veterans.
Often times, young players are eager to defer to their older teammates. That hasn't been the case with Beckman, who continues to play his game as confidently as he can, no matter who is next to him on the lineup card.
"A lot of guys come here and they'll be like, 'Oh, I have to pass the puck over to Fiala or I have to pass to Kaprizov or Zuccarello.' He doesn't," Evason said. "He's like, 'I'm shooting the puck.'
"We said it as an NHL staff the first practice the way that he was very upbeat, very vocal, very confident and just he has this energy about him. And then when you shoot as much as he shoots the puck, you're going to have opportunities. You're going to score and obviously he scored throughout his career and he's going to continue to do it."
Photo by Brandon McCauley
