Ever since I first watched Kane, the first thing that has stood out is the intelligence in his game. Whenever the puck is on his stick, you can see him processing his options, playing with patience, and managing the puck incredibly well. Kane is a creative and brilliant playmaker, seemingly always able to read the play correctly, spot the gap in the defence, and create a scoring chance. Players like this, who always manage the puck well, rarely concede possession by opting for an uncontrolled play, and Kane is right up there with the best of them in this class as a smart possession-style winger. He's not the biggest guy on the ice, but Barch plays a pesky brand, constantly applying pressure on the forecheck and freeing up pucks. All signs point to Barch being named to the US National Development Program, but on talent alone, he deserves to be in this top ten conversation.

Barch was the heart and soul of this Lakers team and a key piece behind their path to the championship. As always, Kane was excellent at stringing plays together all over the ice, leading with his brain to make smart plays to advance pucks up the ice. Whenever he touched the puck, his eyes were up scanning his surroundings, processing his options, and could always detect the right action, rarely conceding possession with whatever decision he made. Especially at both blue lines, he was crucial at securing clean zone entries or exits, making him fundamental to his lines' prolonged offensive zone time. With the puck, he was incredibly deceptive, using smart little puck touches to pull defenders out of position and then thread pucks through the passing lanes and space he's created. Barch didn't fill the net with a ton of points, but it was a fantastic showing and gave me the confidence to plant him in my first round in my latest rankings. His current ranking may be a tad cautious on my part, but he's someone that I can easily see climbing up my list if this level of play keeps up.

Barch tallied four assists in the Lakers' 5-2 win over the Knights, making him the obvious focal point of their squad. I've always noted Kane's playmaking and smart puck-possession game, and that was once again the theme of his play. Everytime he touched the puck, everything he did was about control, maintaining possession, and making the right decision time and time again. No matter the pressure he was under or where he was on the ice, Kane was confident to look for a play to make and almost never conceded possession. My favourite part of all this was his patience in allowing plays to develop. Two of his assists were on beautiful sequences where he held on to the puck for an extra few seconds, giving his linemates time to finish their routes or sneak into open space, and then hit them with a pass when the time was right. While it was only two sequences, it spoke to the high-end processing in his game that I've talked about so many times. I denoted Kane as someone I easily could have included in my first set of rankings, and I expect him to be in this first-round consideration for me over the next few months as my rankings start to take a more concrete shape.

Kane has been the top player whenever I've watched the U15 Huron-Perth Lakers, and the '09 forward fit in well playing up with the U16s. While he didn't have a monumental impact in this game, you could see the smart puck management and crafty hands in his toolkit when he had the puck. I always found he made the right decision with the puck on his stick, prioritizing possession and helping the Lakers advance play. Barch created a quality scoring chance, forechecking hard to force a turnover deep in the offensive zone and then hitting a trailing teammate for a quality chance. Kane was on my radar as someone to potentially include in our initial roll-out of the Canadian '09s, and while he didn't make the cut, he's certainly someone I plan to include in the coming months as we expand.

After some solid viewings in U15 play, Kane entered the year high on my radar of players to keep an eye on over the Titans Tournament to see how they perform and, especially in their match against North Central; I thought he played quite well. With Kane, I found everything revolved around his processing, making the right play, and just being in the right spots all over the ice. With the puck, he showed to be a smart possession-oriented handler, always looking for the right play to advance the puck up ice with control and rarely wasted a possession even if he was under pressure. Whether it was to secure a zone exit, move the puck into the offensive third, or spot a dangerous pass, Barch was always scanning his options and typically spotting the correct next play. Similarly, Barch had plenty of scoring chances that also fit under this intelligence theme, as he was frequently in the right spot to receive a stretch pass or pounce on a rebound, recording a handful of quality scoring chances due to his positioning and anticipation. In these moments, he showed great hands in tight and finishing ability, scoring two critical goals in their 3-2 victory over the Predators. This theme of processing and smarts has always been my read on Barch's play in my past viewings, but seeing it on display to drive play over the Titans Tournament was a great way for him to kick off the 2025 OHL Draft season.

Barch was really fun to watch in this tournament as he was one of the more skilled forwards. Barch’s passing was great. One of my favorite plays was him doing a quick give and go in the neutral zone creating a two on one for his teammates. Another fun play was him doing a behind the back pass behind the net to a teammate in front of the net. While they did not score it still caught the goalie off guard leading to a great scoring opportunity. It was little plays like these that made it so enjoyable to watch him on the ice. Barch excelled at going to the net, whether it was screening the goalie or crashing the net for rebounds. His relentless presence often paid off, as he would score by beating his defender in front of the net to a juicy rebound. Barch's overall offensive play was exceptional, with his passing being particularly noteworthy. His ability to deliver several backhand saucer passes to the slot was especially impressive.

Barch was his typical self, operating with control, connecting plays, and showing that high-end playmaking game that I've highlighted all year long. However, the central theme of my notes was Kane's relentless off-puck pressure, non-stop peskiness, and being all over the Hawks' puck carriers. Kane was a pest on the forecheck, providing a rambunctious effort to break up plays and keep pucks in the offensive zone. The passing/smart decision-making has been apparent from day 1, and seeing more and more of this disruptive forechecking shine is the cherry on top of an already exciting player.

Barch has a beautiful shot. He has a strong quick release and a good eye for picking small gaps, which he took advantage of to score off of an odd-angle shot. He also impressed me with his playmaking, showing patience with the puck. Reading his team’s tempo well, he knew how to let his linemates finish their movements; to get on the inside, build up momentum to get a step on defenders, or find open space. This in turn led to many offensive opportunities and made it challenging for the Express to intercept his puck movements. His hockey sense for patterns and his linemates' positing is highly developed, making him an impressive play driver.

When Columbia Blue started to control play in the second half, it was Barch at the helm of things using his frame and small area skill to drive play. Around the perimeter in the offensive zone he was displaying strong puck protection skills, allowing him to shield the puck from defenders and buy himself time with the puck to make a play with it. He was showing some really good skill in small areas, using his stickhandling ability to pull pucks out of crowded areas, get it on his forehand and gets shot off from in tight. He was showing some good speed as a puck carrier as well, driving defenders wide then gaining separation on a quick pivot before executing a cross-ice pass for a dangerous chance. His best sequence of the game came when he covered for a defender in the offensive zone, stepped up on an opposing forward in the neutral zone to remove him of the puck to kickstart the counterattack, received a drop pass off the rush before pulling the puck around a defender and dishing the puck to the slot for a dangerous chance.

It's not often my first write-up of a player sounds like how this one will sound, but Barch displayed one of the key elements I am looking for in my evaluations. This vital aspect was Kane's phenomenal puck management. Regardless of the situation, upon receiving the puck, Kane took a split second to scan for options and then spotted an open teammate for a pass. These decisions were mainly apparent on the breakout, as every time Barch received an outlet pass, he never panicked and chipped it out of his zone conceding possession, but he spotted a lateral passing lane to win a zone exit. Everything he did was with control, showing tremendous patience to transition the puck up ice. His success in this department was mainly due to his decision-making, but his deceptive handles also opened up plenty of space for him to operate. Kane had the tools to manipulate defenders, buy space, and then make any play he wanted after escaping to safety. Like I said, it's rare for a first impression to sound this positive, especially raving about puck management, so I am eager to watch more of Kane and see more of his game.

Consistent throughout the game, Kane Barch was a nice secondary play-driving piece for Team Canada 2. Some nice speed entering the zone allowed him to get the half-step needed on the nearest defender to hook passes around on his forehand, connecting on passes through the middle to other teammates making inroads towards the net. He also had created some space for himself by attacking with speed down the wall, stopping up hard and shaking off his checker, giving him some time and space to move the puck elsewhere. He worked particularly well when pressured along the perimeter of the ice, moving his feet constantly, he was able to escape pressure and pull defenders away from their post, allowing him the lanes needed to funnel pucks to the middle of the ice.