Joe Veleno is hoping to play in his first NHL playoff game this season with the Canadiens.<\/p>\n
While the Canadiens have already clinched a playoff spot, there\u2019s no guarantee Veleno will be in the lineup when the post-season starts. The Montreal native started this season as an extra forward and had been a healthy scratch 19 times before the Canadiens faced the Florida Panthers Tuesday at the Bell Centre (7 p.m., TSN2, RDS). <\/p>\n
![\""Every](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0408spt-col-cowan.jpg\")
\u201cEvery time I have an opportunity to hit someone, I feel like it\u2019s going to pay off,\u201d says Canadiens forward Joe Veleno, watching teammate Lane Hutson\u2019s shot go wide on New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom as Johnathan Kovacevic defends during first period in Montreal on Sunday. Allen McInnis \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n
Veleno was selected by Detroit in the first round (30th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft<\/a>, and the Red Wings missed the playoffs in each of the five years he played for them before being dealt to Chicago at last year\u2019s NHL trade deadline, with the Blackhawks also missing the playoffs.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s going to be pretty crazy,\u201d Veleno said about playoff games at the Bell Centre. \u201cI\u2019ve always got to watch them on TV because I was always back (home) in time and never got to play in the playoffs. Last year, I was home in Montreal, and I would always meet up with my buddies and watch the Habs games. I think the whole city gets behind them, and at the rink, it\u2019s just a great atmosphere. The city comes alive, and I\u2019m really excited to be in that situation for the first time in Montreal.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Canadiens GM Kent Hughes signed the 26-year-old Veleno to a one-year, US$900,000 contract last summer as a free agent<\/a>, and the 6-foot-1, 201-pound forward has provided a lot of bang for the buck. Veleno has good size and speed, can play centre or wing, can kill penalties and before Tuesday\u2019s game ranked third on the Canadiens in hits with 149, trailing Arber Xhekaj (162) and Zachary Bolduc (160).<\/p>\n It\u2019s impressive how every time Veleno gets an opportunity to finish a check, he does \u2014 and he does it cleanly, with only 17 penalty minutes.<\/p>\n It\u2019s something he takes pride in and it could also make him a valuable player in the playoffs.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery time I have an opportunity to hit someone, I feel like it\u2019s going to pay off,\u201d said Veleno, who has 2-2-4 totals in 58 games while averaging 12:07 of ice time. \u201cI feel our team, in general, we\u2019re kind of lacking that a little bit up front, and I just try to bring that energy and bring that physicality. I\u2019m more than capable of doing it, so I think it\u2019s just an added quality that I can bring. The boys love it. Anyone who finishes hits, the boys are always rallying behind you. Just bringing that energy and physicality has been a big spark for me.\u201d<\/p>\n Being a fourth-line energy player isn\u2019t what Veleno was expecting after becoming the only Quebecer ever granted exceptional-player status to play major-junior hockey at age 15 and being the first overall pick by the Saint John Sea Dogs at the 2015 QMJHL Draft before being selected by the Red Wings. But it\u2019s a role he has learned to embrace this season.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cI figured out that I had a harder time at the NHL level with my skill set,\u201d he said. \u201cNot saying I don\u2019t have any skill, but compared with the elite of the elite, I just thought that maybe I\u2019m not going to come into a game and try to ease my way with my skill and figure I\u2019d be successful.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWith the opportunity that was given to me in the bottom six, I figured OK, I\u2019d start off with being responsible and then adding some little details into my game that would earn the coach\u2019s trust,\u201d Veleno added. \u201cNow, it\u2019s just become being physical and being hard to play against is kind of what I\u2019m aiming for, and being a responsible two-way player and hopefully some offensive contribution can kick in. That\u2019s the kind of player I want to become.\u201d<\/p>\n Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis appreciates what Veleno has become this season. <\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s played with some jam and he\u2019s played with a lot of details defensively,\u201d St. Louis said. \u201cHe\u2019s been very noticeable, disruptive, and he\u2019s been really good.<\/p>\n \t\tEditor\u2019s Picks\t<\/p>\n \u201cI think he\u2019s had a really good year in terms of, I wouldn\u2019t say recreating himself, but probably having a switch in how he sees his game to have an impact and be in the lineup,\u201d the coach added. \u201cBeing a high draft pick in Detroit, probably came in as an offensive player and stuff, and I feel like he walked in here and realized those chairs are taken. \u2018How can I be valuable to a team?\u2019 And I feel like he\u2019s had an understanding of what kind of identity he needs to grab right now, and he\u2019s done that \u2014 and he\u2019s done that with an unbelievable attitude. And that\u2019s why some of these guys extend their careers, have long careers, because they have awareness of what\u2019s going on and how they need to adapt and he\u2019s done that.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like I know exactly what I\u2019m getting when he comes in. For a coach, that you can trust players like that and they can fill a role, it\u2019s a plus.\u201d<\/p>\n