“He hasn’t played as much as we were hoping, but he had a great training camp,” says Thunderbirds head coach Sven Butenschon of 100 Mile House Wranglers alumnus Ben Keon (2018-19). “We called him Roman Josi in training camp because he made some incredibly dynamic plays in the offensive zone. When he gets back in there we’re hoping he can do some of that again.”
Keon is in his fourth season with the UBC Thunderbirds in U SPORTS.
Last season Keon had a career best year with eight points including a goal, in 26 games for the Thunderbirds. This season he is pointless in six games.
“He’s a mobile defenceman that helps exit zones cleanly because he’s good with the puck,” Butenschon says. “He’s got a great shot, he’s kind of like a modern, mobile defenceman back there. He’s a core guy.”
Keon says he’s gotten off to a decent start.
“I think more importantly on a team front, we’re doing very well, sitting atop the standings,” says Keon. “We can attribute a lot of team success to growth throughout our game and being supported by a great cast of players.
“As far as my game is concerned, being a two-way defenceman, I’m defending better overall and also chipping in offensively, I think both those two arms summarize everything as far as my growth as a player,” he adds.
In 73 career games, Keon has two goals and 15 points.
“Playing for the Thunderbirds has been amazing. Everyone’s super welcoming here, there’s a lot of growth for your game if you want to get better, all the resources are here to do that,” he says. “Playing at the U SPORTS level is super competitive. Something that’s great about university hockey is you can continue to do that while getting your education.”
The North Vancouver joined the Thunderbirds after spending three seasons split between the Ontario Junior Hockey League and Alberta Junior Hockey League from 2019 to 2022.
When it comes to Keon’s time in the KIJHL, he says the league “teaches you day in and day out the skills it takes to be a good junior player and then how to translate that because playing university is that next step.”
“The better prepared you can be through junior, the more success you’ll have moving to the latter stages of your career,” he says.
A Sauder School of Business student, Keon was recognized in 2024 as one of UBC’s top student-athletes.
