Everything is coming up Mathieu Cataford these days. The Vegas Golden Knights prospect was voted the QMJHL MVP last season, scoring 40 goals and 50 assists (65 games) for the Halifax Mooseheads. He's making waves in the amateur scene, turning eyeballs to his impressive skill set.
However, the 19-year-old can add another accolade to his growing list of accomplishments. He was officially named to the 25-man roster for Team Canada.
Check out the 2⃣5⃣ players who will wear the 🍁 at the #WorldJuniors in Ottawa! 🇨🇦
— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) December 13, 2024
Voici les 2⃣5⃣ joueurs qui arboreront la 🍁 au #MondialJunior à Ottawa! 🇨🇦
ROSTER: https://t.co/rkEYGrNFYr
FORMATION : https://t.co/aaliYCMONH pic.twitter.com/JFDvmr9tYG
Cataford will join names such as Sam Dickinson, Easton Cowan, and Jett Luchanko for the 2025 competition. He's one of 14 forwards on the team, representing Chateauguay, Quebec. The competition starts on December 26, 2024, and ends on January 5, 2025.
Cataford stands at 6'0" and weighs 192 lbs. He has a right-handed shot and was drafted in the third round (77th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft. The forward's youth team was AHM Saint-Constant and he won the Hlinka Gretzky Cup gold medal once in 2022-23.
It's exciting to see your team's prospects achieve big things like making the Team Canada roster. It puts them on the path to greatness, leaving them one step closer to cracking the main roster. But who else has the potential for greater things in the Golden Knights farm system?
Who else could make it big for the Vegas Golden Knights?
Mathieu Cataford is proving he's on his way to bigger and better things. That started with winning the Hlinka Gretzky Cup gold medal and continued with an MVP award in 2023-24. But he might not be the only Vegas Golden Knights prospect that makes it big.
Watch for Trevor Connelly to make a splash in the NHL in the future. The Providence College (three goals and eight assists in 12 games) forward scored 55 goals and 70 assists in two seasons in the USHL (Tri-City Storm).
The 2024 first-round pick also had an electric 2019-20 campaign with the San Diego Saints (14U AA), scoring 87 goals and 50 assists in 67 games. Sure, he might have a controversial past. However, Connelly has the potential to bring much-needed scoring depth to the prospect pool.
Another name to watch is Matyas Sapovaliv. The Czech forward is projected to score 17 goals and 14 assists for the Henderson Silver Knights (he currently has five goals and four assists). Could he make his way to the AHL All-Star Game despite playing on a weak Silver Knights club? Stay tuned.
In the mean time, let's celebrate Cataford on another hard-earned achievement. He's working his way through the ranks and will prove himself worthy at the World Juniors. Who knows? He might bring the title back to Canada in this iteration.