Villeneuve (5-foot-11, 162 pounds), a left-handed shot with Blainville-Boisbriand of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League who is No. 18 in Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters, is built the same as Hutson (5-9, 162), and has a lot of the same explosive offensive ability.
"For me, it's the elite offensive potential," Damphousse said on the latest edition of the "NHL Draft Class" podcast. "You're talking maybe a Lane Hutson. We all watch the (Stanley Cup) Playoffs now and we all doubted that undersized defensemen could do what he's doing right now, at a high-pace, physical game. I think Villeneuve has that ability to create offense out of nothing. His feet are excellent, his puck game is excellent. He can transport the puck, he can move the puck. He can be a power-play specialist, running it from the top of the blue line."
Damphousse discussed some of the other top prospects in the QMJHL, including Moncton defenseman Thomas Bleyl, who is No. 17 in Central Scouting's final ranking.
The 18-year-old led QMJHL defensemen with 81 points (13 goals, 68 assists) in 63 games.
"The skating is elite as far as speed, mobility, agility," Damphousse said. "His ability to escape traffic is outstanding."
Damphousse also talked about what he likes in potential first-round picks Quebec center Maddox Dagenais and Victoriaville center Egor Shilov, and mentioned a few under-the-radar prospects to watch.
Co-hosts Adam Kimelman and Mike G. Morreale also discussed the Memorial Cup, which starts Friday and can be seen on NHL Network in the United States and TSN and RDS in Canada. There also was a conversation about "The McKenna Project," a documentary that followed the season of Penn State forward Gavin McKenna, the projected No. 1 pick of the 2026 draft, that will air on TNT following Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final on Thursday.
The podcast is free, and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms, including iTunes and Spotify. It also is available on NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.
