2025 NHL Draft Scouting Report #4: Caleb Desnoyers, RW/C, Moncton Wildcats

Background 

Desnoyers, a 6’2” 176 pound right winger from St-Hyacinthe, Quebec, was born and raised in the spotlight. His father, David, played for the St-Hyacinthe Laser in the QMJHL in the early 90’a, while his brother was a 2020 5th round draft pick by the Philadelphia Flyers. Unlike his brother, Caleb was physically mature from a young age, and even while playing against kids 3 years older than him, at times still looked like a man amongst boys. 

Desnoyers’ physical stature, playmaking abilities and puck skills that were years ahead of his peers helped propel him to a fantastic Draft season, posting 23 goals, 53 points in 40 games which was good for 3rd best in Quebec’s U18 ‘AAA’ Development League. These impressive numbers would prove to be more than enough, being selected as the 1st overall pick in the 2023 QMJHL Draft.

With expectations sky high in Moncton for the 2023-24 season, Desnoyers would not disappoint. Making the 2023-24 QMJHL All-Rookie team, while finishing 2nd in scoring by players under the age of 17. His big, offensive play style was potent, as time after time Desnoyers would flash the ability to dominate by slowing the game down to his pace; dissecting defenses with his anticipation and vision. To finish off a great 2024 D-1 campaign, Desnoyers would earn a roster spot on a loaded Canadian squad at the 2024 U18 World Junior Championships. Finishing the tournament at a point per game (5 points in 5 games),  Desnoyers once again showed the world why he was a top prospect for the 2025 NHL Draft.

Skating

Desnoyers skating is interesting to say the least. As a bigger player at around 6’2” near 180-pounds, Desnoyers at times can appear a little sluggish and clunky moving up and down the ice. Along the boards, Desnoyers can at times appear to have a lack of urgency, easily getting caught and stripped of the puck, or bodied before maintaining possession.

With that being said, at his best, Desnoyers looks like an excellent skater in all four directions. He shows effort and power in his stride on the backcheck, hawking down opposing forwards often from the complete other side of the ice. He’s smooth and quick in the right areas, quickly making turns in and out of pressure in order to make quick passes and get rid of the puck. His limitations lie mainly when he receives the puck without moving his feet. He has a tendency to get the puck along the boards and not move while surveying the ice, which traps him and puts him in tough positions with the puck. In transition, Desnoyers has smooth and methodical crossovers when he gets ahead of steam. When he’s able to get ahead of the play, he excels at playing the game at his own pace, moving at a comfortable rate which allows him to use his stick handling and puck skills to their full potential.

His position often has an effect on his skating as well. At center, Desnoyers’ weaknesses are exploited, as he can show a lackluster ability to be able to pick up the puck in tight areas and explode out of them. This leads to him pre-determining his passes, and moving the puck to an area too soon before any of his teammates have a shot at getting there, resulting in a turnover. The opposite occurs when he’s at wing, as he’s able to move without the puck before receiving it, slashing across the center of the ice at full speed so that he can be effective when he gets the puck in transition.

Overall, as long as Desnoyers is put in a spot on the ice where he can get the puck without being caught flat-footed, I think his skating won’t hold him back that much at the next level. If he can become more explosive from a standstill position, and generate more acceleration in his crossovers and out of turns it will go a long way in his offensive game, and will open a whole new world for him to be able to use his playmaking abilities, and stick handling. 

Offensive Game

At times, Desnoyers’ offensive game can be something to marvel at. He’s a fantastic distributor of the puck, and when he’s at his best, his vision and high-end awareness can allow him to place the puck where only his teammates can retrieve it. He’s an extremely creative passer as well, spotting open teammates and finding ways to get them the puck from, at times, obscene angles and areas on the ice. An extension of his creativity is his ability to disguise his passes as shots. Faking out defenses and making them believe one thing, while the entire time he was setting them up to complete the other. Desnoyers is also very good at always head-manning the puck, and does a good job at trying to cover up some of the shortcomings in his skating.

However, it’s a double-aged sword when dealing with his strengths and weaknesses, and it all depends on the situation he is being put in. If the opposing team is very fast-paced and pressures hard on the puck in all areas of the ice, Desnoyers may struggle to find the time and space to really execute his offensive game to the fullest. A good example of this would be a team that runs an aggressive penalty kill, or that clogs up the neutral zone using a 1-1-3, or 1-2-2 which would cause traffic, limiting his time and space. Since his speed already limits him in transition, it’s easy to nullify his impact by continuously creating traffic in the areas of the ice he wants to move with the puck too. He can combat this at times with his quick decision making, and high end anticipation, getting ahead of the play and sneaking by the defense while they’re puck watching. However, that doesn’t always work. In contrast, Desnoyers thrives when the opposing team’s play style leaves the middle of the ice more open, making them more susceptible to odd-man rushes. Let’s say the opposing team runs a 2-1-2, or he’s playing the far side winger while going against a 1-2-2. He’s able to take advantage of the extra time and space and carry the puck with control up the ice. When this is the case, Desnoyers can really move in transition. Problems arise when the pressure around him makes him feel the need to dodge and weave his way through the neutral zone. He simply doesn't have the skating to be able to do that, but when given the proper time and space, his crossovers can really be an effective attribute.

Focusing on a much more consistent, and refined part of his game, Desnoyers has superb puck control. Using his frame and reach, Desnoyer can shield the puck and protect from almost anyone. This is how he’s able to maintain possession for so long in such high danger areas of the ice and in transition, without being an elite skater. Desnoyers is near-elite with the puck on his stick in all facets. Whether that may be in tight and operating in limited space, trying to make a quick move, or maintaining control by keeping the puck away from his body, Desnoyers can do it all. His handle on the puck is also what creates so many goal scoring opportunities for him, and why he’s been finishing at such a nice rate this season despite the fact his shot release is still a bit of a work in progress. There’s no area of the ice that Desnoyers isn’t comfortable in with the puck, which is the perfect cover-up for his so-so skating. 

All in all, Desnoyers will operate best in an offense that doesn’t have to revolve around him. Unless his skating can improve to the point where he can match the pace of fast transition NHL offense, he’ll do most of his best work distributing the puck and letting someone else carry it from blue line to blue line - getting the puck back later with control in the offensive zone. 

Defensive Game

Similar to his offensive game, the weaknesses in Desnoyers’ defensive game all mainly stem from his skating. Sometimes, Desnoyers can get caught behind the play and beat in 1-on-1 situations due to his lack of lateral mobility, and slower developing turns. 

But, Desnoyers definitely doesn’t lack in the effort department. When there’s enough open ice in front of him, Desnoyers is able to navigate back on the back check to either the puck carrier, or an open forward, shutting down rush chances. His long reach gets in the way of passing lanes, sometimes subconsciously without even really trying. He battles hard in the corners, and competes very well. Situations where other players might crumble under immense pressure - like operating from a standstill position at the top of your own blue with your back facing the play - Desnoyers thrives in. Playing a professional-style of game driven by his anticipation and awareness to chip the puck to space. 

Positionally, Desnoyers is sound. As long as he doesn’t over commit on the forecheck, it’s hard for him to get beat. On top of this, these are usually the most common occurrences of him reaching full speed, which can be very effective when he does. His body positioning is very good. He’s able to pin defenders along the wall and win the subsequent puck battle. He’s also good at keeping his head on a swivel, which makes it hard for his man to find open space. 

Overall, Desnoyers brings an intensity to the game that usually isn’t sported by players that play the same style of game as he does. He’s able to bypass some of weaknesses with effort, and determination to get the puck back. 

Hockey IQ

Desnoyers’ hockey IQ is the main reason why he’s been getting so much hype as a potential top 10, to maybe even top 5 pick. His ability to cover up the deficiencies in his pace of play is mostly thanks to sound positioning, and a knack for having the awareness to know where all his teammates are on the ice at all times. He’s exceptionally good at scanning, moving to areas of the ice where he knows he can be most effective: in open space. In the neutral zone, Desnoyers has a tendency to sometimes get caught flat-footed. Although that can be a problem itself, his shoulder checking and pre-scan of the ice allows him to determine where he needs to put the puck so that he doesn’t hold onto it too long and create a turnover. 

In every way that he can be shut down speed-wise, he can be unstoppable mentally. Desnoyers is great at dictating the speed of the game to his own liking, especially once the puck is within the offensive blue-line. Like I said before, his puck control and ability to be comfortable in all situations is what helps open up all the chances he creates for both himself and his teammates. The second layer to his sorcery with the puck, is 100% mental though, and that’s because he almost never puts his head down when he’s on the ice. He’s constantly looking and surveying the ice, working smarter and not harder. He takes advantage of the mental shortcomings of the player’s around him, staying poised and waiting to skate into areas of the ice that naturally open up, rather than out pacing someone to a certain part of the ice to create an opportunity. 

The more you watch him, the more his game starts to remind you of a chess board. Desnoyers is the king, ordering around opposing players as pawns on the ice, creating space for both himself and his teammates with patience, and calmness. Positionally, when high as the F3 in the offensive zone, Desnoyers is fantastic at using his hockey sense to bait the opposing defenders into an area, or into making a certain pass. From there, he can use his quick hands and physicality to regain control of the puck. 

Player Projection

When I see Desnoyers in the NHL in five seasons, I see a consistent two-way winger (not center), who is exceptional at moving the puck and maintaining the flow of the game through his own skill set. In transition, Desnoyers reminds me of Jason Robertson. A bigger player that when he has enough time to get going, can really go, but isn’t a good enough skater to really push the pace and threaten defenders 1-on-1 consistently. What will make him stand out are the tendencies mentally that remind me of Anze Kopitar. Both are players that are great at distributing the puck, but don’t hesitate to let go a solid wrister from anywhere on the ice. While he won’t be able to burn past opponents, he’ll be able to dictate the pace of play using his stick handling, patience and open up offensive opportunities using his creativity, and vision. Maintaining effectiveness in both ends of the ice using his anticipation of the play, and his determination to regain control of the puck.

Right now, the consensus is that Desnoyers will be a top 10 pick no doubt. Presumably between the #5-#8 range. Currently, he is ranked as the #8 overall prospects by Consolidated Ranking, and even as high as #3 by Sam Consentino at Sportsnet. Personally, he’s fluctuated between the #7 to #10 spots. That puts him in the same range as players like Cullen Potter, Carter Bear, Lynden Lakovic and Jake O’Brien, which is right around where I’d be willing to draft him as well. Right now I have him as my 10th best overall prospect for the 2025 Draft, with my reasoning being simple: I don’t think he has the same amount of upside as Potter, Bear and Lakovic right now, (who are the three prospects from #7-#9 that I currently have ahead of him right now). But, with a potential memorial cup run on the horizon for Moncton, that ranking could be subject to change very soon.

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