Veilleux Caps USHL Career with Clark Cup

Xavier Veilleux's season started and ended on the road.

It began with the Muskegon Lumberjacks' marathon 13-game road trip while Trinity Health Arena, their home rink, was being renovated - and ended by hoisting the Clark Cup on the road in a winner-take-all Game Five against the Waterloo Black Hawks.

The road to a USHL championship was a long and winding one for Veilleux and the Lumberjacks - and ultimately it was a road of self-discovery for the defenseman, who had a career year.

“At first, I couldn’t really believe it,” Veilleux said of winning the title. “It’s been a lot of hard work and there was a lot of highs and lows this season. It’s been real fun, real exciting. I’ve been so lucky to be part of the organization and winning it all was awesome.”

Finding success on the road was vital this season for Veilleux and the Lumberjacks. They finished off the season with an away record of 17-8-4-2 (W-L-OTL-SOL), which was the third-best road record in the USHL. Veilleux served as an alternate captain this season, learning the importance of leadership through long stretches of travel and high-stakes matchups as the visiting team.

“It’s very hard to be on the road for so long to start off the year, but at the same you build a special bond with your teammates,” Veilleux said. “You travel as a team, you eat dinner together, you’re everywhere as a team. We grew off of that and at the very end it came down to needing to win one on the road. We knew we were capable of doing it.”

Veilleux, the Islanders 2024 sixth-rounder (179^th overall), was part of the first Clark Cup win in Lumberjacks history. He totaled eight points (3G, 5A) in 14 games in the playoffs, setting career highs across the board.

The 19-year-old defenseman had a thrilling moment in his second career postseason run, as he scored a buzzer-beater in Game Four of the Clark Cup Finals, whipping a shot through as time expired to force overtime, causing the Muskegon home crowd to erupt. Although the contest resulted in a 3-2 overtime loss, the sequence of that buzzer-beater goal stands out as Veilleux’s most memorable moments.

“When that puck was stuck in the corner, I looked to see how much time was left if I was going to be able to take another shot,” Veilleux said. “The puck came out to my captain there and I knew I had a second or two to shoot. I didn’t even see it go in, I just saw my teammates jump in the air and the crowd was going crazy, so I knew it was in. It was unreal. One of my best moments for sure.”

Veilleux is coming off his second and final USHL season before he’ll make the jump to NCAA hockey at Cornell University in the fall.

“The USHL is awesome with development of their players, and also their staff and their referees,” Veilleux said. “It’s a good league, the Lumberjacks are a great organization. It’s also very similar to the NCAA style, you play two games a weekend, so next year for me it won’t be anything new in that regard.”

Playing in the NCAA was always the radar for the L'Ancienne-Lorette, QC native. At the time when he was making the decision between playing in junior hockey in Canada or the USHL, CHL (the organization that oversees the WHL, OHL and QMJHL) players were ineligible to play NCAA Division I hockey. With the goal of playing in the NCAA in mind, Veilleux made the decision to move 900 miles away from home to suit up for the Lumberjacks.

“It’s always been on my radar,” Veilleux said of playing in the NCAA. “I watched the QMJHL my whole life, but when I had to make the decision, moving away from family was hard but it was a dream of mine to play in the NCAA.”

His dream is becoming a reality, as the 19-year-old defenseman will play for Cornell next season. Veilleux attributes the Lumberjacks and his time in the USHL to his development on both ends of the ice, shaping his defensive game while his offensive side progressed.

“They did the most they could to make sure I’m ready for that next step,” Veilleux said. "First and foremost, it was my defensive game, don’t chase any points just play the game the right way. Just to take care of the d-zone and the offense and the points will come. I worked a lot on my shot, and I had a good team too this year, I can give the puck to my teammates, and they could finish the job.”

Before making the jump from the USHL to the NCAA, there’s an important step in between for Veilleux, which is development camp following the 2025 NHL Draft. At the one-year mark since Veilleux was drafted by the Isles, he’ll have a week to skate and bond with fellow Isles prospects when camp kicks off after the 2025 NHL Draft.

“I’m excited to bond with the other guys at development camp and create good chemistry and go from there,” Veilleux said. “It’s exciting for sure, can’t wait to be there.”

For Veilleux, it’s the next stop on the road.