It’s already been a special 2025 for Caleb Desnoyers.
A QMJHL title, an appearance at the Memorial Cup and soon, the Moncton Wildcats centre will hear his name called at the NHL Draft in Los Angeles.
Ranked No. 7 among North American skaters, Desnoyers has the offensive skills, he has the two-way game.
But perhaps most importantly, he has leadership qualities. Take, for instance, the fact the 18-year-old wore a letter on a stacked Wildcats club, despite being one of the younger players on the team.
And as part of that Moncton juggernaut, he produced, finishing second among QMJHL skaters in playoff scoring with 30 points, winning the league’s playoff MVP award along the way.
“I think on the personal side, (I) managed to play really well and help the team,” Desnoyers said during a quick conversation at Buffalo’s KeyBank Center last week. “When you win your regular season and league championship, it’s hard to say you had a bad season.”
Desnoyers and his Wildcats mates kept building momentum as the season went on - his 84 points led the club in scoring - and the product of Saint-Hyacinthe, Que. says the city definitely took notice.
“It was incredible, honestly,” he recalled. “Once (the fans) kinda realized we had the potential to be really good, and bring the first Cup in 15 years, you saw that the city was getting loud, more alive, and starting to support us.”
Desnoyers has been at the forefront of the draft conversation all season long and even amid the hype - the potential for distraction - he produced.
But the veterans by his side - NHL draftees themselves - helped him navigate that extra attention.
Those veterans included defenceman Etienne Morin, a second-round pick of the Flames in 2023, who became the franchise’s all-time defensive scoring leader during the 2024-25 campaign.
“There were a lot of older guys in Moncton so it was great for me to learn everything through the boys,” Desnoyers said of his teammates. “Mo was obviously one of them.”
