Boucher is constantly moving, having quick feet to gain acceleration efficiently, using crossovers effectively and having good strength in his edges. Using his body to protect the puck, he’s able to make smart plays and not get overwhelmed. He has the ability to make very smart passes, rarely taking unnecessary risks and forcing options. Boucher is able to use his body effectively, making sure his opponents feel his presence. He has impressive intensity and physicality he brings, but over time he will need to understand when it’s appropriate and not to follow through with a hit. Offensively, Boucher often flashes high-end puck skills while in the offensive zone and while carrying the puck on the rush. Oftentimes, Boucher is unafraid to challenge opposing defenders one-on-one with his hands and puck handling ability, constantly prodding the oppositions for holes to attack and having the skill to dart into open space with flashy dekes. Boucher demonstrates good speed and agility with strong technique on his skating stride, and shows himself capable of creating offense on the rush with speed down the boards, though Boucher often relies more on his hands to open space rather than his speed. Boucher has the ability to be a strong creator, as he supports pucks well and fed pucks to high-danger areas on the ice more often than not. Boucher’s ability to filter pucks to high-danger areas stands out as a positive in his play, as he’s able to play between the dots effectively to both set up opportunities or finish them off himself. Boucher’s two-way game can be somewhat inconsistent, as his defensive zone positioning at times is spotty and there are some occasions where Boucher can be late to get back on the backcheck, which is an area of his defensive game that will need to be ironed out. He struggles at times handling the puck through the neutral zone and while making offensive zone entries, but is effective along the boards. He needs to be more consistent on his passing accuracy. There are times in the defensive and neutral zone where he doesn’t seem engaged and was even holding up his stick away from the ice, puck watching and not actively taking passing lanes and options away from opponents. He also has a tendency to disappear in and out of games. Moving forward he’ll need to make a impact on a shift-by-shift basis.

– FCHockey’s 2021 NHL Draft Guide