Ben Kevan game breakdown

I dove deeper into his January 11 performance against Fargo.

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Ben Kevan instantly became one of the New Jersey Devils’ best forward prospects upon being drafted 63rd overall in June.

While that is partly because they were previously very thin up front, Kevan is a talented and exciting piece to add to the organization.

What is his game about? I took to the tape – and the numbers – to get a better idea. Special thanks to ProspectShifts for the great video of his January 11 game vs. Fargo.

The good 👍

• One thing that stood out was Kevan’s ability to pressure on the forecheck. His speed allows him to close quickly and he’s a rangy player who uses his stick well to take up a lot of ice, shrink passing lanes, and make it difficult to get the puck around.

• Kevan was generally poised in possession of the puck. He quarterbacked the top power play and looked comfortable in that role. He surveyed the ice well, put good touch on his passes, and was able to play catch create some shooting opportunities for his teammates.

• Kevan’s touch was evident from the get go. On his very first shift, he was hovering near the slot and adeptly accepted a pass behind him. With just one touch he corraled the puck and almost passed it to himself through his feet to get a quick, heavy shot off at the left hashmark.

• Be it on the power play or at 5v5, Kevan was willing and able to rush the puck up ice in a hurry. He generated real speed through the neutral zone and did a nice job of moving the puck to his flanks when pressured and attacking open ice to make himself available for the next pass. This made him dangerous in transition and off the counter attack.

• Kevan showed the ability to beat defenders one-on-one. On one sequence, he grabbed the puck down low in the defensive zone, attacked wide to gain speed, sprinted past the opposing defensemen after entering the offensive zone, and promptly attacked the net to get a shot off in tight. His speed allowed him to carry the puck the length of the ice and turn a defensive possession into a good shooting opportunity in the blink of an eye.