September 26th, 2025: Blainville-Boisbriand Armada 4 vs Shawinigan Cataractes 1
Draft Prospects Hockey Scout Tyler Ballesteros-Willard
#72 D, Xavier Villeneuve
Team: Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, QMJHL
Height/Weight: 5’11”, 157 lbs
Shoots: Left
DOB: September 29, 2007
Overview:
When it comes to the future of blueliners from the QMJHL, look no further than Xavier Villeneuve. Xavier is an electrifying offensive-minded defenseman with great agility and dazzling puck-handling abilities up the rush, showing significant potential for the 2026 NHL draft as a 1st round pick. Known for his tremendous confidence in carrying the puck and reading the offensive zone, Villeneuve brings a unique flair to the back end for the Armada as even though he is quite the risk taker, he is excellent at understanding when to take risks for the team’s own good. When looking at offensive defensemen, Villeneuve does an excellent job at utilizing his shot as much as he can to cause havoc, or even score. However, his small size limits his effectiveness in physical battles in the corners as, and he’ll need to add a lot of strength to succeed at the NHL level because even though the league has many smaller players now, the league is now is as physical as ever and he will need to get ready to endure long 82 game seasons.
Player Projection
Ceiling: First Pair Offensive Defenseman
Floor: Top-4/5 Offensive Defenseman, PP QB. (If not, unlikely NHL shot)
Special Teams: PP1 Quarterback
Production Outlook: 55–65 Points
Pick Range: Mid 1st Round
Strengths:
- Skating and Edgework: Villeneuve’s agility is elite, with quick pivots and tight turns.
- Puck Skills and Passing: Soft hands make his passing smooth and effective, supporting his offensive style.
- Offensive Awareness: Villeneuve has the confidence and vision to be quite the quarterback from the blue line in any scenario (Not even on the powerplay).
Weaknesses:
- Physicality and Balance: Building strength is an absolute must for him to him to be more durable.
- Defensive positioning and decision making with the puck in his own end.
- Discipline: Needs to be mindful of how he possesses himself, especially how he handles external factors.
In-game observations:
- At the quarter mark of the 1st, in his own end, where it seemed like he was slightly out of position, he made it up due to his rapid footwork, which then allowed him to accurately poke the puck away.
- Just passed the ¼ mark of the 2nd, Xavier took advantage at the o-zone blueline which led to him crisply feeding his teammate Lemieux which gave him an assist on the 2nd goal.
- Sequence: Moments later after 2nd Armada goal, he backchecked hard, winning his race and puck possession back in his own end. This led to him generating a lot of momentum with the puck, and where he could have cut to his backhand, he tried doing too much by beating 2 guys at once.
- Start of the 3rd, showed great confidence carrying the puck at high speed, transitioned and maintained offensive zone pressure with ease.
- Displayed great anticipation with the puck quarterbacking the blueline in the offensive zone, led to the opposition guessing every time what Villeneuve was going to do.
- Moments throughout this stage that he would lose balance or battles due to the lack of strength. As a result, many can push him around when he isn’t paying attention.
Skater Ratings:
- Skating: 7
- Puck Skill: 7
- Scoring Ability: 5
- Playmaking Ability: 7
- Hockey Sense/IQ: 6
- Character: 5
- Physicality: 3
- Defensive Play: 4
#15 D, Bo Damphousse
Team: Armada Blainville-Boisbriand, QMJHL
Height/Weight 6’1”, 180Ibs
Shoots: Right
DOB: October 21st, 2007
Overview:
Bo Damphousse is a well-rounded defenseman for the Armada, known for his strong skating, stick positioning, and defensive awareness. His standout skills include excellent puck control, actively defensive stickwork defending the rush, and displaying excellent one-on-one defense, particularly in rush situations. While his backward skating and stride offer power, he needs to improve acceleration. His passing, especially on breakouts, is truly a key asset to offensive game due to how great the transition of play it becomes; however, his shooting accuracy needs quite a bit of work in order for decently offensive chances to come his way due to the fact he shoots high. He is physically pretty solid, Damphousse plays responsibly but could improve his physicality in some areas, like boxing out opponents in-front of the net. Projected as a late 1st round pick to early 2nd round in the 2026 NHL Draft, he has the potential to be a top-pairing or elite 3-4 mobile shutdown defenseman with high end penalty-killing traits with a straight hockey mind playing the game in a simple way, but the right.
Player Projection
Ceiling: 4-5 Puck Moving Defenseman
Floor: 7th D
Special Teams: PK2
Production Outlook: 20-25~ Points
Pick Range: Mid 3rd Round-4th Round
Strengths:
- Defensive Play: Extremely strong in positioning, stickwork, and defending the rush, making him difficult to beat in one-on-one situations.
- Passing: A strong passer, particularly on breakouts, with the ability to make accurate and quick passes under pressure.
- Skating: Smooth backward skating and solid stride extensions, giving him the ability to transition effectively on the ice.
Weaknesses:
- Shooting: Needs to improve accuracy and intelligence on his shots, particularly from long-range.
- Physicality: Could be more consistent in using his body to box out opponents and prevent screens.
- Positional Awareness: Although plays square when defending the rush, he does chase the puck carrier on many occasions in his own end.
In-game observations:
- Though wasn’t credited an assist on 1st Armada goal, Bo showed great offensive engagement as he first joined the rush, he then showed the mentality to shoot. Although it was blocked, what matters is his confidence growing in the o-zone.
- Displayed great anticipation/poise with the puck in his own end as the late stages of the 1st saw him spin back smoothly away from the opposition and then he showcased his crisp passing ability.
- In the 2nd period, in his own end throughout, did a good job playing zone coverage, which led to him intercepting a few passes then crisply breaking the puck out.
- Many occasions seen in the game where Bo would do a good job when pinning the opposition along the boards along with having an accurate stick, but he would then chase the puck carrier which would open a ton of space down low in the slot.
- Throughout this game, showcased an active and accurate stick in his own end.
Skater Ratings:
- Skating: 6
- Puck Skill: 4
- Scoring Ability: 3
- Playmaking Ability: 5
- Hockey Sense/IQ: 6
- Character: 5
- Physicality: 5
- Defensive Play: 7
#11 F, Matt Gosselin
Team: Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, QMJHL
Height/Weight: 5’7”, 168Ibs
Shoots: Right
DOB February 14th, 2006
Overview:
Matt Gosselin is a high-motor, two-way center known for his defensive reliability, strong positioning, and relentless compete level. Though undersized, he compensates with explosive edgework and smart support play in all zones, frequently aiding breakouts and engaging in puck battles through timing and anticipation rather than physical strength. Offensively, he plays a simple game—his shot lacks power, but he generates chances through smart positioning, rebound creation, and crisp, accurate passing. However, he struggles with puck control under pressure and can rush decisions, particularly when space tightens. On the power play, he’s learning to exploit soft coverage areas but must focus on consistently putting pucks on net rather than aiming for perfection. Defensively, he truly excels on the penalty kill with strong gap control, fearless shot blocking, and disciplined reads. His compete level stands out every shift, consistently backchecking hard and sacrificing his body when needed. What really helps out his defensive play mentioned earlier is his explosive edges. Although he does not get the most power from his stride, his quick footwork allows him to explode quickly in order to win puck battles.
Player Projection
Ceiling: NHL Bottom-6 / Penalty Kill Specialist
Floor: AHL Top 6 Forward
Special Teams: PK
Production Outlook: 15–25 Point Energy Forward
Pick Range: Undrafted Free Agent
Strengths:
- Versatility: Acts as a great sponge for his teammates. All over the place/always involved in the play.
- Defensive Awareness: Consistently positions himself well and disrupts plays with interceptions and shot blocks.
- Compete Level: Willingness to do anything for the team (Blocking shots, getting involved hard in puck battles)
Weaknesses:
- Shooting Consistency: Needs to improve his mechanics to develop more power, most importantly, his mentality of getting shots on goal and not overly perfecting it yet.
- Size: Although great involvement on the forecheck, he gets muscled off very easily.
- Consistency in puck skills: Although showcases great 1-on-1 ability against the goaltender, he needs to be crisper with his hand movement when controlling the puck on the rush.
In-game Observations:
- Play sequence at 8-min mark of 1st: Matt in his own zone is doing a good job staying square in positioning when it came to his “point zone” coverage. As of result, this led to Matt easily being able to pick up the puck and carry it at a high pace up the rush. This led to sustained o-zone pressure as of result for Armada.
- Just passed the halfway mark of the 1st, just as he missed the pass from Desjardins, he still remains pressure soundly. This led to a loose puck which Gosselin decided to turn on the jets and give himself a breakaway. Although he didn’t score, he created a PP for Armada.
- Throughout the times that he shot in this game, although quick hand rotation, there was lack of emphasis of using his hips which resulted in his shots not being powerful.
NOTE: He will really need to get stronger if he wants a key shot at the NHL Level.
Skater Ratings:
- Skating: 6.5
- Puck Skill: 4.5
- Scoring Ability: 4.5
- Playmaking Ability: 4.5
- Hockey Sense/IQ: 6.5
- Character: 7
- Physicality: 4
- Defensive Play: 7
#72 F, Chad Lygitsakos
Team: Shawinigan Chataraques, QMJHL
Height/Weight: 5’8”, 168Ibs
Shoots: Left
DOB January 21st, 2008
Overview:
Chad Lygitsakos is a high-motor, playmaking center known for his persistence, strong positioning, and compete level. Though undersized, he compensates with explosive edgework and smart support play in all zones, frequently aiding breakouts and engaging in puck battles through timing and anticipation rather than physical strength. Offensively, he plays a creative game—his shot lacks power, though he does a great job getting the puck off in a hurry due to quick hand rotation. Where the power needs to come in is that he will need to add more strength to his overall game. On the power play, he’s excellent at exploiting coverage in the o-zone. This is due to his soft hands and how he can thread the needle. What he will need to work on however is his poise as he does need to be more patient and controlled with the puck. Defensively, although he isn’t a dynamo when it comes to sacrificing the body, he is reliable when it comes to his positioning. His compete level stands out every shift, consistently backchecking hard and sacrificing his body when needed. What really helps out his defensive play is his explosive edgework. Although he does not get the most power from his stride, his quick footwork allows him to explode quickly in order to win puck battles. With refinement in full leg extension, and increase in lower core strength, this will also provide Chad the balance that he needs to withstand checks.
Player Projection
Ceiling: NHL Middle-6 Scoring Forward
Floor: AHL Top 6 Forward
Special Teams: PK
Production Outlook: 30–40 Point Energy Forward
Pick Range: 6th-7th Round
Strengths:
- Versatility: Acts as a great sponge for his teammates. All over the place/always involved in the play.
- Defensive Awareness: Consistently positions himself well and disrupts plays with interceptions and shot blocks.
- Compete Level: Willingness to do anything for the team (Blocking shots, getting involved hard in puck battles)
Weaknesses:
- Shot Power: Needs to grow muscle to develop more power, most importantly, his mentality of getting shots on goal and not overly perfecting it yet.
- Size/Strength: Although great involvement on the forecheck, he gets muscled off very easily.
- Consistency in playmaking/Poise: Although showcases soft hands to make smooth saucer passes, needs to be mindful of not forcing a pass.
In-game Observations:
- After serving his 1st period out in the box, he came out like a box of fire, first backchecking hard for Shawinigan to possess the puck. He then carried it on the rush and with his edgework, was able to slip around the opposing defender and then slip a pass into the top of the slot.
- Many times, throughout this game, because he doesn’t have the power in his rapid legs along the corners, the bigger players immediately take advantage of Chad, as of result, he loses his puck battles and possession.
- Passed ¾ mark of the 1st, because he was playing where he was supposed to, he took advantage of a turnover. He did make the right play in surprising Milota with a cross-crease pass but Chad’s linemate couldn’t put it home.
- In the halfway mark of the 3rd period, stayed in position very well, which led to him receiving a cross-ice breakout pass. He then walked into the zone and let a very quick snapshot, Milota made the save.
NOTE: He will really need to get stronger if he wants a key shot at the NHL Level.
Skater Ratings:
- Skating: 6.5
- Puck Skill: 4.5
- Scoring Ability: 4.5
- Playmaking Ability: 5
- Hockey Sense/IQ: 6.5
- Character: 7
- Physicality: 4
- Defensive Play: 7