Napon is a player who’s at his best with the puck on his stick, demonstrating a powerful skating stride and adept puck handling that allows him to operate with the puck at top speed and gain the offensive zone with control. His ability to process the play while operating at top speed stood out to me, as he was able to exploit the footing of defenders by performing quick angular cuts that left them flat-footed and allowed him to work around them. He often opted to take defenders on one on one once he entered the zone, usually trying to beat them wide before either making a hard dash to the net or circling the zone waiting for help to arrive. He’s not exactly a super creative playmaker, but his thought process with the puck is middle oriented as he funneled plenty of pucks to the slot area looking to create dangerous chances.

What drew me to Napon at this camp was his ability to impact the game in many different facets. He’s able drive wide as a puck-carrier off the rush and turn around defenders to create space up high for his teammates. He could also use his strength to come out on top in puck battles along the perimeter in the offensive zone and funnel pucks to the middle of the ice. There were instances of a strong power game from below the goal line as well where he would fend off a defender behind the net and make a strong push to the front looking to get a chance off from in tight. This versatility in his game left me optimistic about him and excited for his development.

Napon’s skating ability is what really helped him standout consistently throughout this match up. He generates plenty of power through his crossovers, which allows him to burst through the neutral zone and fly down the wing once he’s gained the line. More often than not he was able to get a step on a defender, drive wide around him and funnel a puck to the middle of the ice looking to create. I would like to see him try and diversify his rush approach to try and make him a more unpredictable attacker, but the toolkit does give him a good amount of developmental runway.