Jeffrey Viel

Jeffrey Truchon-Viel (born January 28, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a forward for the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL). He previously played for the San Jose Sharks, Boston Bruins, and Anaheim Ducks.

Early life Viel was born on January 28, 1997, in Rimouski, Quebec, Canada.

Playing career Amateur Growing up in Quebec, Viel played Midget AAA ice hockey with the Gauls from Collège Antoine-Girouard alongside Anthony Beauvillier. As a result of his physical style of play, he finished his rookie campaign on the team's second line and was drafted in the fourth round of the 2013 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) Draft by the Sherbrooke Phoenix. Upon entering the league, Viel admitted to being "immature" and not maintaining healthy eating habits.

Following his rookie season, Viel was traded to the Acadie–Bathurst Titan in the summer of 2014, where he remained for the remainder of his major junior career. He made his debut with the team during the first week of the 2014–15 regular season against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, where he also scored his first goal of the season. In his first season with the Titans, Viel was the second-leading scorer on the team with 45 points although they finished 19 points out from a playoff spot. On February 20, 2018, Viel was suspended four games for shoulder-checking an opponent in the head during a game against the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles. In spite of his suspension, Viel helped the team win the President's Cup as the QMJHL's Champions and earn the Guy Lafleur Trophy as the tournament's most valuable player. During Game 1 of the semi-final round of the 2018 Memorial Cup, Viel two goals and assisted on two more as the Titan beat the Victoriaville Tigres 6–3. He continued to assist the team is scoring and entered Game 3 of the Memorial Cup finals with 23 points across 20 post-season games. As a result of his successful season, Viel was also named to the tournament's All-Star Team.

Professional Following his Memorial Cup win, Viel joined the San Jose Barracuda, the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the San Jose Sharks. In his first season with the team, he recorded 22 points, 94 penalty minutes, and 116 shots on goal. As a result, he was signed to a two-year, two-way contract with the Sharks on May 29, 2019. During the 2021 offseason, Viel signed a two-year extension to remain with the Sharks. He scored his first NHL goal on December 28, 2021, in 8–7 shootout victory over the Arizona Coyotes.

On July 1, 2023, having left the Sharks as a free agent Viel was signed to a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Winnipeg Jets for the season. Viel played the entire season in the AHL with the Manitoba Moose.

After a lone season within the Jets organization, Viel left the club without featuring at the NHL level. As a free agent, Viel was signed to a league minimum two-year contract with the Boston Bruins on July 1, 2024.

Viel made the Bruins' opening night roster to start the 2025–26 season. After appearing in 10 games with the Bruins through the mid point of the season, on January 16, 2026, Viel was traded by the Bruins to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick in 2026. On April 24, 2026, he scored his first playoff points when he scored on Edmonton Oilers goalie Connor Ingram late in the third period of Game 3 of the Ducks' first round series during the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs; earlier in the period, he had cross-checked Darnell Nurse, which lead to an Oilers powerplay and Connor McDavid's first goal in the series. In Game 4, he tied the game in the third period when he stuffed in a loose puck after a John Carlson shot from the blue line deflected off bodies in front of the net. The Ducks went on to win the game, 4-3, in overtime.

On July 1, 2026, having impressed through his shortened tenure with the Ducks, Viel as a free agent was signed to a five-year, $12.5 million contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Career statistics Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2012–13 Collège Antoine-Girouard Gaulois QMAAA 41 10 9 19 44 13 4 6 10 12 2013–14 Collège Antoine-Girouard Gaulois QMAAA 42 22 23 45 80 3 1 0 1 12 2013–14 Sherbrooke Phoenix QMJHL 8 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2014–15 Acadie–Bathurst Titan QMJHL 64 8 10 18 121 — — — — — 2015–16 Acadie–Bathurst Titan QMJHL 66 33 23 56 132 5 2 5 7 4 2016–17 Acadie–Bathurst Titan QMJHL 63 35 25 60 117 11 10 5 15 16 2017–18 Acadie–Bathurst Titan QMJHL 58 39 23 62 127 20 14 9 23 34 2018–19 San Jose Barracuda AHL 68 11 11 22 94 4 1 0 1 6 2019–20 San Jose Barracuda AHL 54 13 17 30 103 — — — — — 2020–21 San Jose Barracuda AHL 17 2 2 4 31 — — — — — 2020–21 San Jose Sharks NHL 11 0 0 0 23 — — — — — 2021–22 San Jose Barracuda AHL 13 4 2 6 20 — — — — — 2021–22 San Jose Sharks NHL 34 3 2 5 114 — — — — — 2022–23 San Jose Barracuda AHL 60 15 16 31 150 — — — — — 2022–23 San Jose Sharks NHL 4 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2023–24 Manitoba Moose AHL 69 17 23 40 142 2 0 0 0 6 2024–25 Providence Bruins AHL 68 13 24 37 148 8 0 1 1 14 2024–25 Boston Bruins NHL 5 0 0 0 14 — — — — — 2025–26 Boston Bruins NHL 10 0 0 0 30 — — — — — 2025–26 Anaheim Ducks NHL 35 3 7 10 49 12 2 2 4 17 NHL totals 99 6 9 15 232 12 2 2 4 17

Awards and honours Award Year QMJHL Guy Lafleur Trophy 2018 President's Cup (Acadie–Bathurst Titan) 2018 CHL Memorial Cup All-Star Team 2018 Memorial Cup (Acadie–Bathurst Titan) 2018