Audrey-Anne Veillette Could Be A Steal For Ottawa

She waited until the second last pick of the draft to hear her name, but Audrey-Anne Veillette may become a draft day steal, and will be an inspiration for USports players moving forward.

She waited, and waited, and waited, until only two picks remained in the PWHL Draft. That's when, with the 89th pick overall, Audrey-Anne Veillette heard her name called by PWHL Ottawa in the 2023 PWHL Draft.

"I was very nervous for the end, the end was coming very fast," said Veillette about waiting until the second last pick in the draft to be chosen. "I'm just grateful they trust me and they picked me in their organization."

What Ottawa got in Veillette, could turn into one of the steals of the PWHL Draft. 

Last season Veillette scored 26 goals in 22 games for the University of Montreal in USports. It's a total few in history have reached, including past USports stars like Melodie Daoust, Ann-Sophie Bettez, or Jade Downie-Landry.

Veillette took a different path to the PWHL, choosing the USports route, but she's also a player who twice represented Canada at the U-18 World Championships, including serving as an assistant captain. Her scoring prowess at the USports level last season earned Veillette a First Team All-Canadian nod. Other All-Canadians from last season have signed professionally in Europe including Lauren Dabrowski (SDE, SDHL), Shae Demale (SDE, SDHL), Tatum Amy (Leksands, SDHL), while others including former World Championship D1A Best Defender Emma Bergesen of Norway.

Veillette however, recognizes the importance of her selection for other USports athletes to see a path to the PWHL.

"I think t's great for USports players and the others are going to come in the next few years," she said. "I think they're going to have someone to look up to and say 'ok I can do it' and be excited."

To compare the level of success Ottawa fans could see from Veillette this season, Jade Downie-Landry serves as the most recent comparison. Downie-Landry graduated from McGill University in 2022 before making the jump to the PHF signing with the Montreal Force. There, Landry put up 10 goals and 23 points in 24 games as a rookie, enough to interest PWHL New York who selected the forward in the ninth round, 52nd overall in the PWHL Draft.

And still, in her final season, Downie-Landry scored at a .93 goals per game pace, while Veillette at a 1.18 rate. 

Audrey-Anne Veillette is also a likely candidate to enter the PWHL season as the league's youngest player. The 22-year-old was the second youngest player selected in the draft, with the youngest coming with the final pick at 90th overall in 21-year-old Lina Ljungblom. Ljungblom however, will need to play out her contract in Sweden this season before joining Montreal.

With youth, opportunity, and scoring skills, Ottawa may have nabbed a late round steal in Audrey-Anne Veillette.