Last season, McBean split his time between the Stars and the NIHL 1’s Solway Sharks, on a two-way deal, as he featured for both clubs in a combined 75 appearances, as well making his Team GB debut with the Under 20’s at the World Junior Championships in Lithuania.
In 26 games with Dundee, the 19-year-old scored twice and set up a pair of other goals, adding to his 66 regular season points (35G, 31A) with Solway, in 27 matches.
He also recorded 47 points (27G, 20A) in 19 NIHL 1 North Cup ties and added eight more points in the NIHL 1 Playoffs, scoring three goals and five assists.
McBean ended last season with four winners medals as he and his Solway teammates won a quadruple, which included the NIHL 1 National Championship, North Division Championship, North Cup and the North Division Playoff Championship.
The forward also brought home a silver medal in December after making his international debut with GB at the U20’s World Junior Championships in Kaunas, Lithuania, where they finished as runners-up in Division 2 Group A.
In five games at the tournament, Jonathan scored four goals and assisted on four more for eight points, and four penalty minutes.
After coming through the Dundee Stars Juniors and playing one season abroad in Canada, the centerman played two seasons in the SNL with Dundee Comets before making the step up to join the Stars on a two-way deal, last summer.
Throughout the 2022-2023 season, McBean impressed with his hard-work and commitment both in training and when given the opportunity in games, where also showed his ability to create chances, that could test some of the best goaltenders in the Elite League.
LEFEBVRE ON MCBEAN
Once the deal to bring in McBean on a full-time basis was completed, Stars Director of Hockey Operations and Head Coach, Marc LeFebvre, said: “I am really excited to have Johnny joining us full-time.
“He has an exceptional skillset that will help us with the way we want to play this season in Dundee and obviously he got that great experience last year and scoring your first goal at a young age is great for confidence in himself, as well.
“From watching the video on him, he is a great skater and he has great hands but still has a lot to learn and develop, although he is a young guy and it is going to be a great season for him.”
LeFebvre continued: “We want to have homegrown talent on the roster and he is the next cog of players coming through the system.
“I am looking forward to having him as part of our team full-time and the other part of it is, that we want to have depth on our roster and be able to play four lines, and he proved last year that he can play at this level.
“He is going to be fighting for his ice-time and developing along the way with full-time participation with the club.
“The final part of it for me, is the development, because he is a young guy, he is still developing and wants to become a better player and more professional off the ice.
“Part of my background since leaving the Stars has been in development side of things, especially in the ECHL with Orlando (Solar Bears) and Cincinnati (Cyclones) and fortunately I have had three players go on to play in the NHL, that I have coached.
“So, we want to get him to the highest level possible and into the national team setup as well and that starts this season.”
MCBEAN ON HIS FIRST FULL-TIME PRO DEAL
After agreeing to extend his time at the club, Jonathan said: “I am buzzing, last year was a good experience being on a two-way with Solway and I feel like I have gained a lot of experience from that.
“Now, I feel like I am ready to take the next step and come here full-time.
“It was always my priority to come back here, being from Dundee and growing up here, so as soon as that was on the table, I was not really worried about anything else.
“I love this club and the city, so there is no real reason to leave, especially with a new coach coming in and it all sounds good to me, I believe this is going to be a successful year for us.”
Listen to the full interviews below!
In his career so far, Jonathan has featured in 193 matches, recorded 162 goals, 136 assists, and collected 72 penalty minutes, while also making three playoff appearance, scoring five goals and eight assists.
Jonathan is our 4th signing of the summer and joins Drydn Dow, Lucas Brine and Kris Inglis, on the roster for next season.
McBean will again wear #12 for the Stars and you can sponsor his equipment for this season right now, click HERE.
To see Jonathan’s career stats on Elite Prospects click HERE.
All images: Derek Black.
