To say Blainville-Boisbriand’s Xavier Villeneuve is excited to be with Canada at the 2025 U18 World Championships is an understatement.

The 2026 NHL Draft prospect is thrilled to play not only against – but also with – the best players in this age group.

“If you want to be the best, you’ve got to play against the best,” Villeneuve said. “But playing against these guys every day during practice has really helped me.”

This past season, Villeneuve recorded 62 points in 61 games to finish second in scoring among Q d-men. That offence has translated already to the U18’s where he has five points (two goals) in four games.

The @ArmadaBLB's Xavier Villeneuve is going to garner so much attention at the 2026 #NHLDraft.

The blueliner makes it 3-0 🇨🇦! #U18MensWorlds pic.twitter.com/WJZLBqlwtL

— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) April 27, 2025

After a perfect 4-0-0 round-robin, Canada faces Czechia Wednesday in the quarterfinals. The gold medal game is set for May 3 in Frisco, TX.

26 CHL PLAYERS NAMED TO CANADA’S NATIONAL MEN’S U18 TEAM
(G) Lucas Beckman (Baie-Comeau Drakkar / QMJHL)
(G) Burke Hood (Vancouver Giants / WHL)
(G) Jack Ivankovic (Brampton Steelheads / OHL)
(D) Quinn Beauchesne (Guelph Storm / OHL)
(D) Carson Carels (Prince George Cougars / WHL)
(D) Alex Huang (Chicoutimi Saguenéens / QMJHL)
(D) Ryan Lin (Vancouver Giants / WHL)
(D) Daxon Rudolph (Prince Albert Raiders / WHL)
(D) Jackson Smith (Tri-City Americans / WHL)
(D) Keaton Verhoeff (Victoria Royals / WHL)
(D) Xavier Villeneuve (Blainville-Boisbriand Armada / QMJHL)
(F) Braeden Cootes (Seattle Thunderbirds / WHL)
(F) Ethan Czata (Niagara IceDogs / OHL)
(F) Alessandro Di Iorio (Sarnia Sting / OHL)
(F) Matthew Gard (Red Deer Rebels / WHL)
(F) Beckham Edwards (Sarnia Sting / OHL)
(F) Tyler Hopkins (Kingston Frontenacs / OHL)
(F) Lev Katzin (Guelph Storm / OHL)
(F) Liam Kilfoil (Halifax Mooseheads / QMJHL)
(F) Ben Kindel (Calgary Hitmen / WHL)
(F) Brady Martin (Soo Greyhounds / OHL)
(F) Jack Nesbitt (Windsor Spitfires / OHL)
(F) Cole Reschny (Victoria Royals / WHL)
(F) Ryan Roobroeck (Niagara IceDogs / OHL)
(F) Cameron Schmidt (Vancouver Giants / WHL)
(F) Lukas Sawchyn (Edmonton Oil Kings / WHL)

Michael Misa (Saginaw Spirit / OHL), Landon DuPont (Everett Silvertips / WHL), and Jake O’Brien (Brantford Bulldogs / OHL) were invited but are unable to participate

General Manager – Scott Walker (Guelph Storm / OHL)
Head Coach – Cory Stillman (Guelph Storm / OHL)
Associate Coach – Travis Crickard (Saint John Sea Dogs / QMJHL)
Assistant Coach – Mathieu Turcotte (Blainville-Boisbriand Armada / QMJHL)
Goaltending Consultant – Dan De Palma (Kamloops Blazers / WHL)
Video coach – Matthew Smith (Acadie-Bathurst Titan / QMJHL)
Athletic therapists – Andy Brown (Owen Sound Attack / OHL) and Terence Robertson (Red Deer Rebels / WHL)
Team physician – Dr. Nolan Rau (Kelowna Rockets / WHL)
Strength and Conditioning Coach – Sean Young (Ottawa 67’s / OHL)