Maddox Dagenais wants to be known as a versatile forward.
Multi-faceted, even.
The Quebec Remparts star is a centre by trade, but as he counts down the final days prior to the NHL Draft in Buffalo, he wants everyone - including NHL clubs - to know he can do the job at any forward position.
"I think last year I learned a lot about winger,” he said of his 2025-26 QMJHL campaign, one that saw him finish second among Remparts scorers with 30 goals and 62 points. “I think just being a strong guy on the boards and big, you know, (I like to) reverse hit also.
“Just hunt the puck, be F1, and just get into my game.”
At 6-foot-4 Dagenais has the frame to develop into a bruising power forward, and his NHL Central Scouting ranking (No. 15 among North American skaters) suggests there’s considerable upside to the 18-year-old Montreal product’s game.
Dagenais wasn’t born yet when father Pierre suited up for the Canadiens from 2003 through 2006, but he draws inspiration from a current Montreal skater - as well as a player the Habs faced in this spring’s Stanley Cup playoffs.
“I like to mix with both (Buffalo’s) Tage Thompson and (Montreal’s Juraj) Slafkovsky,” he told reporters at the NHL Scouting Combine. “I think (they’re) just two big guys.
“Good offensively, good shots, and, you know, (they) just use their size.”
That package will serve the NHL club that drafts Dagenais well, but so too will it benefit the Remparts. Three years removed from a Memorial Cup title, Quebec announced this week that Dagenais will be back in the fold come the fall, to help the team chase more major junior glory.
The Centre Vidéotron is an electric building to play in, too; part of the reason the Remparts are reportedly interested in hosting the 2028 Memorial Cup, which would be their third time welcoming the national event to the provincial capital since the turn of the century.
“It’s amazing. Probably eight thousand fans every night, always cheering for us,” Dagenais said of his home arena. “It's like an NHL building.
“So every time you step on the ice, you never take something (for) granted, and, you know, you always work hard.”
As he navigated his media session in Buffalo, Dagenais switched seamlessly from English to French. He told a Quebec reporter the most underrated facet of his game is his playmaking, but in watching him hold court, the forward’s ability to think on the fly mirrors his ability to lock down multiple roles on the ice.
A faceoff man. A power forward. A goal-scorer and set-up artist.
And whether his pro path takes him down the middle of the playing surface or along the flanks, Dagenais is sure to attack each challenge with aplomb.
“I played both (wing and centre) during my life and I learned a lot about winger last year,” he said. ‘I think just learning the (professional) game, I loved playing winger last year.
“Just having both my toolbox, I think it's just a plus for me.“
