This story is part of The Sun’s 2026 NCAA Hockey Tournament Supplement. To view the rest of the supplement, click here.
In college hockey, things don’t just fall into laps very often. Head coach Casey Jones ’90, a seasoned recruiter of more than 30 years, knows that good and well.
So when NHL sixth-round draft pick Xavier Veilleux, a United States Hockey League sensation, was suddenly on the market, Jones knew he had a job to do.
“I was like a dog on a bone on that one,” Jones said, laughing now. “There were some sleepless nights there trying to finish that off and get that closed there for our staff.”
But at the time, it wasn’t a laughing matter.
Veilleux, a native of Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec, had always been on NHL radars. Before he jumped to the USHL, he dominated his Under-18 AAA team, going point-per-game as a blueliner.
There was a reason why he was drafted 179th overall by the New York Islanders in 2024. There was a reason why he was going to play college hockey in the Ivy League.
But not for Cornell — initially.
Though Veilleux, a vibrant two-way defenseman with a championship pedigree, has now found his place at Cornell, he was initially committed to a school way out east, one that, when it visits Ithaca, Cornellians buy fish to leave on the Lynah Rink ice.
Veilleux was initially a Harvard commit, having pledged his allegiance to the school back in 2022.
“It just didn’t work out there,” Veilleux said.
The world of collegiate athletics is ever-changing — now more than ever, schools can use money and Name, Image & Likeness deals to lure blue-chip recruits to their programs. It’s seen everywhere, including within college hockey. The Big 10 is the main culprit — namely Penn State.
It’s not to say that’s what happened with Veilleux — he was committed to a fellow ECAC program, an Ivy League school, and it didn’t end up coming to fruition. For Veilleux, years of planning had culminated in an unfortunate situation, all while gunning for a playoff berth with the Muskegon Lumberjacks during the 2024-2025 season.
Enter Cornell.
“I can ‘[comment] allex-vous,’” Jones, a French speaker, quipped. In English: “How are you?”
Jones can recruit — his prowess is dotted all over Cornell’s freshman class of 12 and two sturdy transfer defensemen. And when Jones, from Témiscaming, Quebec, caught wind of Veilleux searching for a new program to call home, he swooped in with his French-Canadian finesse.
“[Associate coach Sean Flanagan] and I kind of tag-teamed that one pretty good,” Jones said. “We came out of every different direction. Once he was on the market, it was like, ‘Hey, we need this guy.’”
Veilleux, finding himself in an unprecedented situation, had all his doubts melt away once he spoke with Jones. There was a kinship he felt with a fellow Québécois.
“It just felt like there was a different connection because of the place we both came from,” Veilleux said.
Because Quebec is a unique place, where hockey is woven into the fabric of who its residents are. It is a place where pond hockey is customary come the fall of wintertime and where skates are tied on as soon as you can stand.
“Everywhere you go, there’s outdoor rinks. During winter, it was my favorite thing to do growing up there,” Veilleux said. “My dad built one in our backyard.”
That’s how Veilleux’s hockey background was kick-started — his father, Hugo Veilleux, spent four seasons playing in Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League before playing professionally in France. Veilleux was strongly influenced by his dad, though he wound up choosing defense rather than offense, like his father.
“But I play a two-way game,” Veilleux said. “I think I’m pretty responsible defensively, but I can definitely bring something to the table offensively, too.”
That he can — Veilleux has shattered records as a freshman defenseman. With 20 assists and counting, Veilleux has the most assists (and most points, with 26) as a freshman blueliner in program history. If Veilleux scores once more, he’ll tie the record for most goals by a first-year D-man in Cornell’s history (seven).
Veilleux is also currently tied for first in the nation in scoring among first-year defensemen with Penn State’s Jackson Smith, a first-round NHL draft pick, in one less game. No freshman blueliner has more assists than him.
Since being paired with junior defenseman Hoyt Stanley on Cornell’s top defensive pair, Veilleux has taken the job and run with it. Amid a season that many entered with questions about how the Red’s defense would fare, Veilleux has been a shining light.
“Four of [our] D playing regularly last year were gone. We only returned two,” Jones said. “So we had three new guys playing in a lot of situations for us, and him being a freshman, being young — that has been impressive. And we're reaping the benefits of that right now.”
Veilleux’s flourishing has surprised some — but not necessarily the coaching staff.
“We kind of knew,” Jones said with a knowing smile — pride, probably, from luring such a coveted recruit to his program. “He played a main role on a USHL championship team, and was [a] pretty critical component of that team. That usually translates pretty well.”
Veilleux was an alternate captain on Muskegon’s USHL championship-winning team in 2024-2025, notching 41 points in 61 games (and eight points in 14 playoff matches) to secure the Lumberjacks’ first-ever Clark Cup.
Veilleux’s defensive responsibility was something Jones expected to translate well to the collegiate level. The 200-foot game needed to win in the USHL is quite similar to what’s needed in college.
But those offensive numbers?
“He's taken full advantage of the opportunity,” Jones said. “And that's where [he’s] maybe exceeding a little bit on the expectations there.”
Year after year, Veilleux’s assist totals have skyrocketed. 33 last season, 29 the year before, 26 the year before that. His vision on the breakout is unlike many other defensemen in college, let alone first-years.
“I think my IQ is probably my biggest strength,” Veilleux said. “I think I can break out the puck pretty well, and my gaps overall are pretty good as a D-man, something I've worked on for the past couple of years.”
Veilleux can deliver on the ice. He and Stanley are matched up against the top offensive players in the nation, which will only continue when Cornell takes on Denver — an offensive powerhouse ranking top 10 nationally in goals per game with 3.5 — in the NCAA Tournament.
But, according to Jones, it’s Veilleux’s attitude off the ice that takes precedence over all the records he is setting.
“I think what separates him a little bit is his compete level at practice is really at a high level,” Jones said. “I think that's what's going to be consistent. He just came in with the right mindset, and he competes on a daily basis. He's good from Monday [through] Thursday, which sets him up to have success on the weekends.”
After all, Veilleux — named Second Team All-ECAC — knows what it takes to be a champion. So he’s not so much focused on his numbers, but rather on how he can put his best foot forward to reach the pinnacle of hockey wherever he goes.
“We had this team [in Muskegon] where it felt like no one was an all-star or anything,” Veilleux said. “Even though we didn't have the best team in the league, I think that just the team chemistry got us to winning the Cup. … We went into the playoffs [and] just had this underdog mentality.
“That’s kind of the same vibe I had coming in [to Cornell, to be honest. It’s such a great culture here. It's so fun. And it kind of feels exactly like how it was last year.”
For everyone, it seems to be a pretty perfect fit.
“We want that student who wants an education, but [also] who is going to push hard to be a pro and fit our culture with their work ethic,” Jones said. “There’s nothing missing there. From a character standpoint and from fitting in and who we want to be as a team, he fits in perfectly.”
Jane McNally is a senior editor on the 143rd editorial board and was the sports editor on the 142nd editorial board. She is a member of the Class of 2026 in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. You can follow her on X @JaneMcNally_ and reach her at jmcnally@cornellsun.com.
