Kris Beech

Born:	Feb 5, 1981	Draft:	1999 Capitals, 7th Overall
Hometown:	Salmon Arm, British Columbia	Position:	Centre
Known For:	2006 AHL Calder Cup Champion	Shoots:	Left
National Team:	Canada	Current Status:	Retired

Kris Beech (born February 5, 1981) is a former Canadian ice hockey player, having played his final year in the NHL split between the Columbus Blue Jackets, Vancouver Canucks, and Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2007-2008 season. Drafted 7th overall by the Washington Capitals in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft, Beech appeared in just four games with the Capitals before returning to the Western Hockey League, where he continued playing for the Calgary Hitmen. In a shocking move, Beech was packaged with Ross Lupaschuk and Michal Sivek and sent to the Penguins for Jaromir Jagr and Frantisek Kucera.

Beech played his first full season with Pittsburgh in the following season, but despite his 25 points in 79 games, his minus-25 rating revealed his defensive struggles. He spent the next two seasons split between the NHL and AHL, and played the entirety of the 2004-05 season with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. amassing 62 points in 68 games. In September 2005, he was traded to the Nashville Predators for a conditional pick, which turned into the 116th pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, which was used to select Derrick Lapoint. Beech struggled again to keep his spot in the NHL, leading up to his trade back to Washington, along with a draft pick that would later become goaltender Semyon Varlamov, for defenseman Brendan Witt.

1999 NHL Draft Class, Kris Beech — Kris Beech (Wikipedia)

He managed to play 64 games in the 2006-07 season, registering 26 points and 46 penalty minutes, but would sign with the Blue Jackets the following season. The month of January in 2008 turned out to be a wild ride for Beech. He was placed on waivers by Columbus and picked up by the Canucks. After four games in Vancouver, he was placed on waivers and claimed again, this time by Washington. He did not play a game and once put on waivers, was claimed a third and final time by the Penguins, marking four different teams in one month. While his NHL run ended that year, Beech played in eight more seasons in leagues around Europe, including Germany, Sweden, Finland, and Czechia.

Kris Beech Statistics

Trade Tracker

Date	Traded From	Traded With	Traded To	Traded For
July 11, 2001		Ross Lupaschuk		Jaromir Jagr František Kučera
Sept. 9, 2005				Conditional Draft Pick
Mar. 9, 2006		First-Round Pick 2006 (Semyon Varlamov)		Brendan Witt