Whenever I watch Fransen, the story is almost always very similar. He was incredibly calm with the puck, thriving on retrievals and showing a willingness to carry the puck out of his zone. No matter how many forecheckers were applying pressure, Max wasn’t panicking, he had the tools to evade and play a confident puck-managing style out of Upper Canada’s back end. He provided more than notable puck-moving, connecting on pass after pass to move pucks up ice, making him the backbone to transitions shift after shift. This involvement as a puck-manager and rusher has been constant since the outset of the year and what puts Fransen well on my radar.

A smooth skating and mobile puck moving defender, Maxwell Fransen was displaying a solid two-way game against JRC. He carried the puck with confidence, using his dynamic footwork to draw in opposing players and create space for himself and his teammates, moving the puck well in tandem. He was reading the ice and communicating with his teammates well, gesturing commands for them and delegating to his players. He did not record a point but made positive plays with the puck on his stick and along with using his stick and positioning to protect the front of his net, he provided a lot of value at both ends of the ice despite scoring no points.

It was a quieter game from the typically uber-active offensive defender, but he still played well. There were the usual flashes of him activating up ice, joining the rush and getting in on the action, even if it wasn’t the same volume as a normal viewing, they were still good to see. I thought he brought a bit more defensive value in this one, winning pucks and stopping opponents’ attacks. Even if things weren’t going right offensively, Maxwell still added value to his squad.

Fransen showed flashes of his usual self, being that confident and puck-dominant defender that likes to activate up ice. It wasn’t as frequent as I’ve come to expect but he did still make his impact carrying pucks up ice or creeping in to get a pass in the offensive zone for a solid chance. The all around mobility was at the center of it all, giving him all the tools to evade forecheckers and keep play flowing up ice.

Fransen was all over the ice in this one. Constantly activating to jump up in the rush, carrying pucks up ice, and playing that rover game from the UCC back-end. While the focus was jumping up with the play and chipping in offensively, there were some good flashes of winning pucks in his defensive zone and providing a solid puck-moving element that made for a well-rounded performance. Maxwell tallied two in this one, including the OT game-winner, both in similar themes of activating to receive a pass and then swiftly firing home a shot. In a key semi-final matchup, Fransen rose to the occasion and was a key factor behind their victory.

I really enjoyed my first viewing of him but it did come with some ups and downs of sorts. He’s a bigger and longer strided player who showed balance, escapability down low, and the ability to recover his positioning if he is too aggressive in moments. That range and power let him push up ice in end to end rush attempts and make a few dangles through the neutral zone in transition. His capacity to really control the play is evident though as he can assert himself with a bigger frame and close off angles quicker than most. While his play came with some turnovers and some aggressive spots where he got the puck poked away, he’s got ample opportunity to tap into more upside. I like him and certainly see him doing well moving forward.

While there were some mishaps along the way, he showed well as a defender his length to his stride and the ability to control pucks at the extension of his reach. There were a few end to end rushes that impressed me as he is able to stickhandle with reach around pressure through the neutral zone. I thought his second half was better than his first as he had a couple coughed up turnovers and individual attempts to escape pressure down low in his zone which didn’t work out. I like his balance and his skating stride to evade pressure though.

I thought Fransen did a good job at moving the puck in transition which stemmed from his strong defensive zone play where he was able to win puck battles and get into shooting lanes quite effectively throughout the game. The speed and execution of his passes were impressive as he was quick to transition plays form one zone to the next even if it meant hitting a teammate further down the ice or getting pucks through the layers of his opponents. He had strong individual rushes up the ice and was not afraid to take any open space that was given to him which was also how he was able to score the 4-4 tying goal after he drifted down towards the left circle, getting lost behind the defense and fired a long rebound into the back of the net.