Last season was a disappointing year for the QMJHL, leaving us wanting more. Not a single player was selected in the Top 50 in 2024. However, we didn’t have to wait long for a turnaround, because this group is the best from the region in a long time. There could be as many as four first rounders, not something we see often from the QMJHL. This season promises to be exciting!
#1 Caleb Desnoyers – Center – Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL)
Caleb Desnoyers is the most anticipated prospect from the QMJHL for the 2025 NHL draft. His first steps in the QMJHL have not gone unnoticed as he maintained a production of almost a point per game last season, putting him in most of the early top 15’s. Of course, the production is a shiny thing to look at, but the detail in his game is much more impressive.
The first feature in his game that catches the eyes is how his game is already mature. Whether in the offensive or defensive zone, more often than not, he places himself at the right place, waiting for a pass or defending the coming offensive attack. For a center, the ability to understand the game that well is a must. Desnoyers is definitely a highly intelligent player, understanding the game at a level already higher than the QMJHL. He takes advantage of the slightest error from the opponent to crash to the net or make a smart pass to an open teammate. His reaction time is quick, making him remarkably effective with the puck.
Using his quick thinking, Desnoyers can clearly be tagged as a dual threat. He has a powerful wrist shot that he likes to use with speed going towards the net. His shot lacks a little precision, but it is not something to stress about. But what has stood out for me in the offensive zone is his playmaking. He sees so well where his teammates are and when to make a pass. What helps him create so much offence is his skating ability. He is not the fastest skater, but a very agile skater with a lot of control of his direction.
However, Desnoyers offensive game comes with a lot of inconsistency. He uses his abilities well, but he is most dangerous on the counter attack. Can he take over shifts by creating when not given a pace or numbers advantage?. His physical play is also a little inconsistent, as he lacks strength currently. Improving that could easily solidify his position in the rankings. Desnoyers may look like a complete player, but there are always many things for him to improve. He has shown last season what tools he brings to the game, and I personally hope to see a big step forward in his productivity coming into the next season.
Desnoyers (#18) is a dangerous player at 3 on 3. We can already see how well he understands the open space on the ice. In the first half of the clip, Desnoyers makes the defender stop moving his feet, then goes around him and rushes to the net. After that, in the second half, we see his playmaking. At step ahead of the play, he executes a perfect pass in front of the net and they score.
He possesses a great release. Just look how he turns his body towards the net to be able to shoot anywhere he wants in the net.
Desnoyers makes plays like this often. He hides in the back of the play, then suddenly jumps in the play, grabs the puck and flies to the net. His reading here gets him on the breakaway, giving him a great scoring chance.
Desnoyers is not the player that plays with the highest pace of play. He prefers to wait in the weeds for an opportunity. Even in transition, he doesn’t try to enter the offensive zone with great speed, which sometimes gives him difficulties in trying to keep possession once in the zone.
#2 Justin Carbonneau – Winger - Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (QMJHL)
I cannot hide how much impressed I was with the improvement of Justin Carbonneau as the past season went on. First time watching him, he didn’t do much other than score a nice goal in the shootout. I kept his name somewhere just in case. Well, a few months later, he already stood out from other players, just controlling the game as he wanted. He may be less well known than big names like Desnoyers, Guité and Huang, but it is only a question of time before he is considered in the same tier as those other QMJHL players.
Carbonneau is always trying to create something in the offensive zone whenever he gets the puck. He plays with a fast pace, often controlling the game with his mobility. He likes to move with the puck from the periphery of the offensive zone before finding a breach in the defence and cutting in the middle. He has a decent shot that can surprise goaltenders from every angle, but it could use a little more power. He is also a crafty playmaker, trying to open lanes with his speed and mobility or by beating defenders one on one with skill. Furthermore, his amazing skills really give him the wow factor when he controls the puck on the ice.
With all that, there is still a big part of his game that Carbonneau needs to refine if he wants to get better. I would like to see him work in the defensive zone as hard as he works to get the puck in the offensive zone. Defensively, he tried too often to cheat and that puts him out of position. He could also try to play more in high traffic areas without the puck and not just on the periphery. He has so many tools that could translate well into the NHL, but his mind isn’t there just yet. In the end, Carbonneau could just become a more dangerous player on the ice if he could improve those bad habits.
I was there live when he (Carbonneau, #8) did this play, and it was mighty impressive. This really shows off his skill level with the puck. So close to scoring, but we can see a lot of his abilities here and the “wow factor”.
This is not the type of play I see often. From the corner to the front of the net with a little jump, it was very close to being a goal. He’s got the skills and the creativity and that could go far.
He is such an imposing presence when he has the puck. In this clip, he goes coast to coast passing through every player on the way. And after all that, he passes the puck perfectly in front, but his teammate wasn’t able to finish the play.
Carbonneau has incredible hands. It looks easy for him passing the puck through players. But many times, he tries too much instead of passing the puck to a teammate or making a simpler play. This is working well in the QMJHL, but at the next level, he’ll need to refine his decision making.
#3 Emile Guité – Winger - Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL)
Emile Guité was rewarded by the QMJHL for his impressive season last year, winning the award of the best rookie of the year, and it was well deserved. Drafted just behind Caleb Desnoyers, the first overall pick in 2023, Guité has shown why he was drafted so high. He possesses NHL qualities that make him a potential first-round pick for the 2025 NHL draft.
He processes the game at a very high speed, moving the puck quickly in a tactical place to keep the pace of the play. His understanding of the game really helps his teammates to play on another level, making them better every time he is with them on the ice. When Guité is in the offensive zone, he likes to shoot the puck from the slot as often as possible and he knows how to get in this area by himself. The majority of his shots were taken there and it shows how he really is an intelligent shooter. He has no difficulties finding a shooting lane that has the most chance to generate something. Furthermore, Guité has a powerful one-timer that he uses often on the power play. Don’t leave him alone in front of your goalie, because he will not miss this chance to score with his smooth hands. His playmaking follows the level of his other skills, as he brilliantly uses the open space to make a dangerous pass in the slot. His head is always up, and he doesn’t hesitate to make quick passes in the offensive zone that generate scoring chances.
Guité is one of the youngest players from the QMJHL for this draft. And clearly, we can see that he is still raw, but with all that he brings, his development curve could just explode next season. However, being on the younger side of the draft also has its disadvantages. Guité is currently underweight, and even for his size, 6’1, he has difficulties playing physically along the boards. Once he gets stronger, I can’t wait to see what type of player he could become. Another thing that could be beneficial for him to work on is the intensity with which he plays. His feet are not always moving, as he prefers to slide into the play. That could help him improve his compete level and better use his high IQ on the ice.
Guité (#86 white) has smooth hands as shown here. What a goal on a breakaway!
Here is a strong shift by Guité. He starts his shift with a nice blocked pass, proceeds with a breakout play and then, in the offensive zone, he places himself at the right place and makes a perfect shot to score.
Guité’s playmaking is excellent. You can see him scan the position of his teammate several times before receiving the puck. He already had in mind the next play he was going to make.
As a young player that is not totally used to his 6’1 body, Guité has difficulties winning battles along the boards. He is still not heavy enough, but that will come sooner than later.
#4 Alex Huang – Defender - Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL)
Here is another player from the Chicoutimi Saguenéens who is a name to remember for the next draft. Quite possibly the best defender of this QMJHL group, Huang is exactly what you are looking for in a top 4 defenceman nowadays. His confidence grew a lot in the second half of the season, and he could realistically be the number 1 defender on his team this season. With more ice time, what type of player will he be?
Huang is already a two-way defender, helping the attack a large amount of time on the rush. He has a great vision and sees openings on the play to generate offence. On the power play, he is the quarterback of his team, moving the puck with his excellent four-way mobility. He has great edge work, manipulating his opponent on the direction he will take. Despite his skating ability and hockey sense, I find that Huang brings most of it only on the power play. It could really help his draft stock if he could improve his offensive confidence and create more plays at even strength. He maintains composure under pressure and has good enough hands to push further his offensive contributions. The talent is clearly there.
Defensively, Huang is more of a project but the tools are there. He has a good reach with his stick and he is not afraid to use his body to push opponents. He puts himself in front of shots without fear and he is positioned well enough to block passes. Many times, he is caught watching the puck instead of keeping his position, unbalancing the defensive structure. His offensive eagerness sometimes takes over, putting in trouble the defence when he misses a breakout play.
There are plenty of qualities that make Huang a player to watch for the upcoming season. He will not even be 18 when he gets drafted, so he has a lot of time in front of him to improve many facets in his game.
Huang (#12) is an agile and mobile skater. His four-way mobility can help him evade an adversary in many ways.
He is not the defender that is afraid to get involved in the offence. He tries as much as he can to help the offence, like here, as he sees that his pinch could get him the puck. Then, with the puck, he shows us his mobility and puck control to score a nice goal.
Huang likes to be involved in the offensive rush, but sometimes, his decision-making with the puck can be questioned. Here, as he supports the attack and gets deeper in the offensive zone, he tries a weak shot to the net that nearly creates an odd-man rush. These types of play at a higher level could be unforgivable.
#5 Bill Zonnon – Winger - Rouyn-Norando Huskies (QMJHL)
Zonnon will already start his third season in the QMJHL this season. He is one of the oldest players in the draft, while being born less than a month away from being available for the 2024 NHL draft. He will have to produce a lot more to convince scouts that despite his age and experience in the QMJHL, he can bring a lot to the game.
Zonnon is definitely not a player that is difficult to find on the ice. The 6’2” and 179 lbs forward is always working hard, charging like a train for the opponent who has the puck. What amazes me the most is how hard he backchecks. I have honestly never seen a player back check as often and with as much intensity. He generates a lot of speed on his skates with his will to get the puck, his explosiveness being impressive at times. He plays heavily along the boards, showing his astonishing level of compete. However, he must be careful not to get penalties as he is sometimes too intense.
With all this intensity, he still is a smart player. He plays a great two-way game, more often well placed than not. He does not hesitate to take the place of the defender if he attacks with the puck, as I have seen him doing a lot. Zonnon’s tools are still raw, needing some refining. It is rare that we can see his one-on-one skills to beat a defender, but when he does, we comprehend that he uses his hands only in times of need. He mostly uses them in a tight area to evade pressure.
With all this, the thing that kept him from being higher in this ranking is the way he generates offense. Finishing at near one point per game last year, it is not the production that is the problem, but more the way he produces. Playing with the likes of Antonin Verreault, who has finished first in points in the QMJHL, has its benefits, but it also boosts your stats. He does make smart passes in the offensive zone, keeping the play active. He has a decent shot but could definitely use it more. Generating offensive chances by himself was something difficult last season, hopefully he will take a step forward and produce a lot more. That would certainly help his ranking before the draft day. Currently, scouts may question his offensive upside as a pro.
This shift shows the two-way game of Zonnon. First, he backchecks hard to stop the odd-man rush. Then, once his team has recovered the puck, he helps on the offensive rush, finishing this clip with a fancy no-look pass.
When Zonnon has time to make plays like that, it shows what his offensive potential could be. He is not the craftiest offensive player, but a very effective one.
Even if Zonnon has skills, they look limited. He uses moves like one in this clip to get out of the danger, but never to go towards the net. His hands aren’t quick enough to pass around junior opponents right now and that could limit his offensive projection.
#6 Owen Conrad – Defender - Charlottetown Islanders (QMJHL)
Here is a big defenceman that could make his way up into the ranking of many teams as the season goes on. As teams tend to draft more and more big players that can hit, play fast with the puck and be responsible in their own zone, Conrad’s game may be just what they are looking for.
Looking already strong from his 6’2 209 lbs at only seventeen, he is primarily a shutdown defender. He can body check, hold his adversary on the board behind the net and push players in front of the net. He still has to learn how to use his body effectively in defence. He tends to finish his hit when the player already loses possession. These decisions to recover the puck aren’t always the right one as they put him out of position. Similarly, Conrad has some adjustments to make with his pinching down the wall. Trying to cause a turnover, he pinches too far, creating an odd man rush the other way because of his poor timing with his pinching. Nonetheless, these abilities are on their way to becoming an important asset of his game and could be interesting to see his improvement there this season.
Conrad is a generally intelligent defender that uses his vision well to make breakouts. He regularly makes a good first pass to exit his own zone. He is not currently the defender that will carry the puck to the offensive zone, due to his limited skating speed. He has decent mobility and uses most of it on the power play. What about his offensive? There are moments that show some confident plays, controlling the puck well at the blue line and trying to get the puck to the net. But there is a lot of work here for Conrad, like creating more plays with his passing and jumping more into the attack, which I think he has the potential to do.
If everything goes well for Conrad, we might have a two-way defender that helps produce points but also has a solid defensive game. There is a lot he needs to work on to get there, but the project could be appealing for some teams on draft day.
Conrad (#10) plays hard in the defensive zone. He can pin a player along the board with his strength, use his rangy poke check and also battle in front of the net. This clip shows these abilities well.
I have seen Conrad do many plays like this one, and it’s rarely a success. His pinching is poorly calculated, creating an odd-man rush the other way.
#7 Philippe Veilleux – Winger – Val-d’Or Foreurs (QMJHL)
Last season was a season to forget for the Foreurs as they finished dead last with only 15 wins in 68 games. While being one of the two teams that didn’t make the playoffs, The Val-d’Or Foreurs had at least one thing to look forward to; the future for them could become interesting, with Philippe Veilleux leading the group as the past season was better than expected for him and a few others.
Veilleux is a spectacular player with his quick stickhandling. He can pass between the opposing defence or move the puck quickly around one player before attacking the net and generating a great scoring chance. He constantly sets up plays with his quick passes in the slot, making the defensive structure move as he intends. He plays a low pace game, hiding behind the play to jump into the attack whenever he sees the chance. This has the advantage of surprising the opponent, but also making the play harder for his teammates as he is often far from the play.
This combination of playmaking and stickhandling is always more effective when you have the puck. The main struggle in Veilleux’s game is when he doesn’t have the puck. He plays with low intensity, never really going along the boards to fight for the puck. Plenty of times, he is caught behind the play and takes time to get into his position. His skating definitely doesn’t help him. It lacks power and explosiveness, giving him difficulties to evade players or catch up to the opponent.
With the obvious size problem with Veilleux (currently listed at 5’10), the question remains as to what extent, what he does on the ice could be translatable to the NHL at some point. He is a rare type of player where the skillset is diverse and crafty, but the rest of his game is a big project. With the Foreurs possibly struggling again this season, it will be interesting to see how much Veilleux will be able to show his progression.
There is an example of what Veilleux (#44) could do even with little space. He has quick hands and his ability to score close to the net is remarkable.
Veilleux’s vision allows him to make good passes like this one in the offensive zone. He is pretty effective with the puck.
Many bad habits from him in this clip. First, we can see his lack of intensity to backcheck, and then, he is caught puck-watching, going towards the puck carrier instead of keeping his coverage. That mistake nearly cost a goal to his team.
#8 Xavier Lebel – Winger - Québec Remparts (QMJHL)
Xavier Lebel is possibly one of the biggest risers for me from the QMJHL last season. Playing with the second-worst team in the league, putting points on the scoresheet was not an easy thing. But in the last 13 games of the season, he managed to get 10 of his 28 points. Thanks to a lot of his tools, Lebel could be an entertaining player to follow this upcoming season.
The skillset of Lebel is still pretty raw, but there are a lot of flashes that show what he could become. He has great hands, can move the puck around players and get into dangerous scoring areas by himself. However, he tends to get stressed and loses control of the puck a little too easily under pressure. He needs to slow down his pace of play to see better potential options. When Lebel plays more calmly, he uses his great speed to go around the defender and cut to the net. He will need to work on his stability on his skates, as he is often pushed on the ground way too easily by the opponent when he tries to crash to the net.
While not the biggest player, only 5’10, Lebel does play aggressively, and he will try to attack the net. This is where he had most of his goals this season. One of the surprising traits in his game is how good his playmaking ability is. He has great vision, and he can make simple passes to move the play, but also makes passes to the slot, generating chances for teammates. Sometimes, he even wants to pass a little too much, forgetting that he could use his shot to score.
As the next season is closing in, Lebel could become a pleasant surprise for the Remparts if he starts producing more points. He was only playing around 15 minutes per game last season and if the team could make him play more, that could easily help his development. And if his composure and physicality also improve? You might have a player that will get drafted sooner than later.
This clip is an amazing one to show the vision of Lebel (#9). He is the one starting the play with a nice breakout pass. Then, he joins the rush, takes a drop pass and sets up a nice goal.
He is a strong skater and can use his speed to pass around a defender and crash to the get.
Lebel will need to improve his puck protection and stability. He is too easily pushed away from the puck. Here, he lost the puck two times because of his lack of physical strength.
#9 Nathan Lecompte – Center/Winger – Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL)
Yes, Chicoutimi has another player in the top 10 here. Nathan Lecompte has been a productive player wherever he has played. He had more than one point per game in the QM18AAA at the age of 15 and 16 and he continues in the QMJHL to show his offensive prowess.
Nathan Lecompte may not be the biggest player from his 5’9 frame on the ice, but he is a tenacious one. He works very hard along the board and is not afraid to fight in front of the net. He is relentless every shift, moving his feet a lot with intensity and energy. Even better, he is quick on his skates, using his speed to evade players while in the offensive rush or when crashing to the net. He did a lot of the last one in the games I watched. He was waiting for the perfect moment to push towards the net to be a dangerous pass option. Lecompte has a great vision, whether with or without the puck. When he controls the puck, he sees passing lanes and effectively finds open teammates.
While Lecompte played center for most of the games, his future is surely as a winger. Not only because of his size, but also because of his playstyle. He is not the most effective player in his own zone and can be turnover prone. He gets rid of the puck easily whenever someone comes to pressure him. Furthermore, his prime goal this season should be to adapt his game to his 5’9 body, learning how to win battles along the boards and play more calmly at times. Will his game translate well to a higher level of hockey? His offensive vision might, but the AHL or NHL are a lot bigger and more physical. I suppose that if he gets plenty of points this season, there is a big chance he gets drafted.
This clip shows his anticipation in the offensive zone. Lecompte (#42) sees that the play is getting close to the net. He keeps a great position to receive the puck and gets rewarded with a goal.
A great clip to see his understanding of the game. As he sees a teammate crashing to the net, he understands that the best play for him is to slow down the play and get behind his teammate with the puck. Once he received the puck, his defender was just joining the rush and Lecompte made a perfect pass.
Lecompte often looks stressed with the puck close to the boards. Here in the defensive zone, instead of slowing down the play and passing the puck to his defender behind the net, he tries to dump the puck at the center of the ice above 3 opponents. His attempt failed as the puck got intercepted and the other team scored on the play.
#10 Liam Kilfoil – Center - Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
Liam Kilfoil has officially made Team Canada for the Hlinka Gretzky Cup 2024. Even if he will surely not have the biggest role for this stacked, talented team, it will be interesting to see his impact on the game in the bottom six as Kilfoil didn’t have the most productive season last year with 20 points in 62 games.
He is a decent skater, using his speed in transition most of the time. He has a little power forward in him from time to time where you can see him crash to the net with the puck even if he is not the biggest player. However, given those power forward tendencies, you’d like to see him become more involved along the wall, rather than floating as a passing option.
Most of the goals that I saw from Kilfoil were from the front of the net. He doesn’t have a powerful shot, as he doesn’t seem to have the strength for now to rip the puck. What is helping him offensively is his vision and positioning. Even if he plays a simple game, he is effective with the puck and makes good passes that progress the play.
Kilfoil has a lot of work in front of him if he wants to one day make a bigger impact on the game. His lack of puck control and explosiveness prevent him from creating space for himself to make his plays. If he could improve this part of his game, would it be enough for him to get drafted? We will see how his season will go.
There are moments in Kilfoil’s (#9) game that can be surprising. Here, he uses his momentum to enter the zone with speed and cut to the net, scoring a nice goal against one of the best teams in the QMJHL.
Even if Kilfoil does not play physically consistently, he is still an intense player. I would like to see him hit here and there sometimes, but he has plenty of energy.
We can see in this clip the lack of explosiveness of Kilfoil. In a straight line against a lanky defenceman, Kilfoil should have won this race, but instead he ended up being hit and losing the puck.
Honorable Mentions:
Louis-Alex Tremblay – Defense - Sherbrooke Phoenix (QMJHL)
Being a small defender is never an easy thing when it comes to projection to the NHL. There are not a lot of 5’9 defenders and those who are there are high-end in a multitude of abilities. Louis-Alex Tremblay possesses many abilities that are good in the QMJHL, but will they be for a higher level of hockey?
First, Tremblay has a powerful shot. He uses it quite often, trying smart angles to generate a rebound in front of the net. His slap shot is also powerful and he displays it generally on the power play. What he could use more is his vision. He sees the ice well, making precise passes, but in the offensive zone, he doesn’t take many chances, preferring to play things safely a lot of the time.
As the offensive side of his game is quite intriguing, the defensive side still has some work to do. He is not the most physical player, and he can try to push players or to poke check, but his range and strength prevent him from being truly effective. If there is one thing he does well in his own zone it is the breakout. With his vision, he thinks fast and often makes the right decision with the puck.
For the next season, Tremblay will surely have more responsibilities, probably also more power-play time. He will have to produce a lot to get the attention of NHL scouts and even as a productive defender, will his size get in his way of getting drafted?
Tremblay (#77) can really shoot the puck. His slap shot is heavy and precise and he can score some nice goals with it!
Even if the clip is on the power play, we can see his difficulties to physically stop an opponent.
Mateo Nobert - Center - Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (QMJHL)
Mateo Nobert was drafted third overall in the 2023 QMJHL draft. There is still a lot of expectation towards him as he didn’t fully play to his potential in his first season in the league. There are flashes of a skilled offensive player that can create many scoring chances, but we hope that these moments become more of a regular thing for Nobert.
Born in August, he is still at the beginning of his development curve and at times, it shows in his game. Nobert needs to process the game faster if he wants to succeed at a higher level. He looks like he knows what he wants to do, but he does it just a little bit too slow. When the ideas match the skills he possesses, he will be a more considerable offensive threat. He has great hands, can skate decently fast and he is deceptive in his change of direction.
Physicality is not a part of his game for now as he is easily pushed away from the puck by an adversary. There was some improvement with his puck protection, and we see that his potential could be very interesting once he takes a big step forward in this area. For now, it's hard to say what he could become as we expect him to improve a lot this season.
These moments when Nobert takes advantage of the opening in the opposing defence are what we expect to see more in the future. He has a great shot that can beat a goalkeeper just like that.
We can see in this clip his difficulties along the boards to win a battle, where the other player only needs to play with his body to keep Nobert away.