Devils' Kevin Bahl Reflects on Playoff Atmosphere in Newark and Playing More Physical Game

Kevin Bahl is getting his first taste of playoff hockey. He shares what the atmosphere was like at Prudential Center for Game 1 and wanting to bring more physicality to his game.

"The most exciting part for me was, I don't know how many seats we got here, but there were (thousands) of fans screaming. I couldn't even hear myself think. It was just amazing."

It is safe to say New Jersey Devils defenseman Kevin Bahl was impressed with the atmosphere at Prudential Center when he stepped onto the ice for the first playoff game of his career on April 18. 

The Devils clinched a playoff spot on March 25 with nine regular-season games remaining before the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. While there were still franchise records to break, the overall intensity dropped as his team wrapped up their 82-game season. 

"I was excited to get that intensity back up. To get back into a game where it's 110% intensity, like you're fighting for your lives against the other guys. It was fun to be in that, for sure."

At 22 years old, Bahl has 66 career NHL games under his belt. He spent most of the 2022-23 campaign in New Jersey, appearing in a career-high 42 games, and for the New Westminster native, it has been a season of opportunity, learning, and development.

"I think there’s a lot to learn. If you’re in or you’re out, there’s always an opportunity to learn," said Bahl. "Watching (from the press box), there were a couple of things I picked up on, and I know I can be better. It’s getting an opportunity to learn."

"I think just playing games, that's the biggest thing for me," he said. "As much as you can practice, you can't really gain that game experience or those plays, so there's a certain point where I thought I got to compete, I got to try to stay in the lineup here so I can just get my play up and get where I want to be."

Once things began to click for the 6-foot-6 blueliner, he turned his attention to fine-tuning his timing and adding more physicality to his game.

Through the first four games of New Jersey's series versus New York, Bahl has been the team's most physical defenseman with 11 hits, the second most among all Devils skaters after Timo Meier (16 hits). 

After the team's Game 1 loss, I asked Bahl if he felt pressure to play a physical game. 

"No, not necessarily. It's one thing I want to bring more of. I feel like a lot of it is timing and getting used to the speed at the NHL level, I think that's probably the biggest thing. I love to play a physical game, and I want to bring more of that."

By the end of Game 2, things were getting testy on the ice. He was one of five Devils players ejected from the game in the third period with a misconduct. The next game, he found himself in the penalty box after taking a roughing penalty against Artemi Panarin. 

"Intensity is up, and the stakes are that much more crucial. You can't have any mistakes at all." 

Bahl will look to continue to bring physicality in Game 5 on Thursday, April 27, when the Devils host the Rangers at Prudential Center.