Rumors started circulating in early May and ultimately were confirmed that forward Philippe Veilleux has committed to play his college hockey at Northeastern. The news was confirmed first by Mikaël Lalancette of Le Soleil de Québec, and further confirmed by Nicolas Cloutier of TVA Sports. According to Cloutier, Veilleux had contact with nearly 30 NCAA teams and Northeastern beat out multiple high-profile programs including Michigan, Penn State, Arizona State, and Quinnipiac for the his commitment.
Veilleux is a 5-foot-10, 180 pound left shot winger hailing from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada. An ’07 birth year, he played nearly this whole last season at 18 years old, turning 19 just over one month ago in late March. He has been playing for the Val-d’Or Foreurs in the QMJHL for the last three seasons, where he has been one of the top offensive players in the league. This season, he put up a staggering 96 points (43 goals) in just 64 games, and added another 9 points (5 goals) in 9 playoff games while skating as an assistant captain. His 96 points in the regular season were second-best in the league, and his 43 goals were fifth-best, and his 53 assists were sixth-best. He had 256 shots on goal (4 per game), good for 7th-most in the league. He was named a QMJHL Second Team All Star (with fellow commit Marcus Kearsey), and was a nominee for the David-Desharnais Trophy for the most sportsmanlike player in the QMJHL.
Last season he scored 87 points (40 goals) in 64 games, which was third-best in QMJHL scoring, with his 40 goals sitting seventh-best in the league, one behind current Northeastern forward Jacob Mathieu. In total, he has scored an astounding 230 points and 97 goals in 196 regular season games, and has 23 points in 19 career playoff games. He’s also incredibly disciplined; this year he only took five minor penalties all year, and has taken nineteen minor penalties in his entire three-year career.
A former first round pick in the QMJHL draft in 2023, Veilleux somehow went undrafted in the NHL Draft after his breakout 2024-25 season. He was ranked as high as 99th by Elite Prospects prior to the draft, and was one of the highest-ranked undrafted players by their rankings. This year, he is ranked 180th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, indicating a potential late-round selection potential as an overager. With his sustained success in the QMJHL, even at his size you would think a team would throw a dart at him. Scoring goals is the hardest thing to do in hockey, and Veilleux is exceedingly proficient at that.
Scouting reports glow about Veilleux abilities with the puck on his stick. Rated a 4.25-4.5 star prospect by Neutral Zone, NZ’s scouting report ahead of the NHL Draft details his ability to “consistently finds ways to generate offense,” has “a strong playmaking element to his game,” and as an undersized player, “he is elusive and understands how to avoid contact rather than absorbing unnecessary hits.” They further add “he has a high hockey IQ and strong anticipation skills, making him effective at disrupting plays and turning defense into offense…ability to read and react to scoring opportunities…plays a disciplined game and does not take unnecessary penalties.” Other NZ scouting reports about Veilleux detail his “exceptional vision, often finding open areas in prime scoring locations…his playmaking instincts are a major asset…his ability to create scoring chances is consistently impressive, sowcasing his elite stickhandling and quick movements…Philippe works hard on the backcehck and shows excellent positioning in front of the net.”
Elite Prospects’ profile on him further lauds his puck skills: “A dual-threat player, Veilleux is capable of making the best play in most situations, leaning on his shot or playmaking, depending on what the defence gives him. His deception adds another layer to his play-driving abilities. He feints defenders, makes them turn, and baits their pokecheck, opening up space for the attack and passing lanes to the slot.” Rated a 4.5-star prospect by PuckPreps, their player card further highlights Veilleux as one of the top players in the league in transition, playmaking, and in shooting, though he could stand to get to the slot more to maximize his goal-scoring ability.
Arguably one of the most dynamic players to commit to Northeastern in years, Veilleux is slated to arrive in either Fall 2026 or Fall 2027. Per the TVA Sports article linked above, a decision has not been made as of now. Whenever he does arrive at Northeastern, expect him to slot into the top six immediately and get powerplay time as well.
Congratulations to Philippe on his commitment to Northeastern!
As always, go Huskies!