Projection: Puck Moving Upside

Tools: Confidence, Mobility, Assertiveness

Development Opportunities: Defensive Details, Defensive Engagement

I have really appreciated the confidence and assertive style Fortin brings. With the puck he is always looking to make an impact, and has some genuinely high-end moments when the handling and lateral footwork click. He's calm under pressure, can routinely escape forecheckers with slick moves, and shows a real desire to dictate possessions, especially in transition. There is just a swagger to his game where he wants the puck on his stick and isn't afraid to make a play.

The transition involvement is what has drawn me in most, but I have some reservations when play is coming back his way. There are moments where he is passive, gives up too much space, and projecting that forward gives me a bit of pause. Getting more fine-tuned on the defensive details and reads will be crucial to being a reliable player on an OHL roster. He checks a lot of boxes in terms of mobility and play with the puck though, and he's certainly someone I would bet on and work with on the defensive side to hopefully hit his ceiling as an OHL puck mover.

Sebastien Fortin was a great defender right out of the gate in this one, showcasing some really solid two-way skills. He has good mobility with some speed, allowing him to keep up with opposing players and showing a good defensive stick as they enter his zone and helping to support the offence for his Kings squad. He has soft hands and is able to make crisp passes to his defence partner and to break the puck out of his own end, often being the man back for retrievals. Fortin was a player who did not score in this game but showed a lot of solid potential as a smart right-shot defender.

I liked Fortin’s decision-making and patience with the puck. He was calm, taking his time to survey his options, and was often stringing together the right play to move pucks up ice with control. Everything seemed calculated, scanning for outlet passes and lanes to the slot, as Sebastien’s head was up and taking that extra second to make a play. This processing angle has been what’s drawn me to Fortin since the early days of getting to know the 2010s, and what’s continued to shine down the stretch.

All throughout the game I kept noting Fortin’s confidence to rush the puck up ice. If there was open space, he was taking it, transporting pucks through the neutral zone and getting Vaughan established in the offensive end. Eventually he broke through in the third frame, carrying the puck across the offensive blueline, taking it wide, and beating the netminder far side with a shot from the exterior off the rush. The same theme reoccured in overtime, when Fortin navigated through the neutral zone, splitting the defence with tactical touches and tucking it by the goaltender with a quick move to his backhand. While it hasn’t amounted to goals all the time, this activation and confidence in Fortin’s game have been what’s always stood out whenever I watch him.

It wasn’t a perfect game from Fortin, he had a few hiccups and not everything was perfectly executed, but on the whole I thought he was a positive contributor. His sense of calmness and patience with the puck was at the forefront of my assessment. Even when under the presence of a forechecker, Sebastien was taking his time, surveying his options, and making the right play. If he needed to evade pressure, he could, combining mobility and handling to navigate to safety. Almost every viewing of the Kings I’ve noted Fortin for his smart decision making and ability to play a crucial role in their breakout and this was no different in the quarter-finals.

Fortin was a calming presence on the Kings’ blueline, playing a composed puck-moving game and bringing a reliable first pass out of the back. Everything was under control with Sebastien, he never rushed his decisions, panicked under pressure, and was always ensuring the Kings could transition up ice seamlessly. He had some moments of activations to carry pucks and connected on some nice passes within the offensive zone, but the smart and reliable puck management game was my primary takeaway in this one.

Fortin impressed with his calm puck management and two-way impact. I thought he was stellar at getting pucks out of his end, both by denying entries and retrieving pucks and sparking clean exits. He always seemed calm, never panicking with the puck on his stick, and constantly found ways to execute breakouts and help the Kings commence rush attacks. I’ve seen Fortin quite a bit thus far and this theme of a composed defender who routinely makes smart plays has been constant throughout my evaluations and was nice to see yet again in pre-season action.

Fortin played a composed, puck-moving game, stringing together smart decisions and helping his team move up ice with control shift after shift. He always seemed calm, cool, and collected under pressure, taking his time even when a forechecker was all over him to find an open passing option and keep play flowing up ice. The puck-moving and the confidence to make plays under control were my key notes on Fortin, and that also translated to creating offence. Showing both a desire to attack forward and use his passing vision in the offensive zone to hit open teammates and drive some quality chances.

Fortin made a really strong first impression. I thought he displayed a promising package of confidence and a tactical approach to the game that really moved the needle. When he had the puck, I always thought he read the play correctly, made the right decision, and kept play flowing up ice with control. Whether it was connecting on a simple pass or using his lateral mobility and handling to escape pressure and dodge a forechecker, Sebastien always seemed to be able to find ways to maintain possession. He's a strong skater with the baseline physical tools I'm looking for in a preliminary assessment, but I just came away really impressed with the processing and decision-making, which is always an extremely positive sign in a first viewing.