Jonathan Marchessault (English: ; né Audy-Marchessault; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a forward for the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has previously played for the Columbus Blue Jackets, Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, and the Vegas Golden Knights.
Undrafted and regarded as an undersized player, Marchessault began his career as a professional player in the American Hockey League (AHL) in 2011. He signed his first NHL contract with the Blue Jackets the following year, though he remained mostly with their AHL affiliates. He became a more regular fixture with the Lightning in the 2015–16 season, and departed to the in-state rival Panthers that off-season, where he had a 30-goal breakout season.
After being selected by the Golden Knights in the 2017 NHL expansion draft, Marchessault became one of the core pieces of the team's offense, and helped Vegas become the first expansion team to reach the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season since the St. Louis Blues in 1968. He was selected as the Golden Knights' All-Star representative in 2022, and led his team to a Stanley Cup victory in 2023. He was elected winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the 2023 playoffs, becoming the first undrafted player to win the award since Wayne Gretzky in 1988.
As a youth, Marchessault played in the 2003 and 2004 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with a minor ice hockey team from Rive-Nord, Quebec.
Marchessault played his entire junior ice hockey career with the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). He originally joined the team as a 16-year-old for the 2007–08 season after being drafted by them in the 12th round.
In the 2009–10 season, Marchessault won the Gaétan Duchesne Trophy as the QMJHL's best defensive player. He was also named Player of the Week in both the QMJHL and Canadian Hockey League (CHL) for the week ending December 13, 2010.
As Quebec's alternate captain in his final junior level season, Marchessault finished sixth in the QMJHL in scoring during the 2010–11 regular season. He also led the league in game-winning goals with 11. In the 2011 playoffs, he led the QMJHL in scoring despite Quebec having been eliminated in the semi-finals; he became the first player to lead the QMJHL in playoff scoring despite not playing in the final round.
Marchessault was named the QMJHL Top Star of the Week for the week ending September 19, 2010. He was also named CHL Player of the Week for the week ending April 3, 2011, during the QMJHL playoffs. At the end of the season, Marchessault was awarded the Bud Light Cup as Quebec's player of the year. Moreover, he was named a QMJHL First Team All-Star.
Not having been selected in any NHL entry draft, on June 23, 2011, Marchessault signed his first professional contract with the New York Rangers' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Connecticut Whale, on a recommendation by Dean Stork, coach of the ECHL's Greenville Road Warriors. Upon signing, Marchessault joined former Remparts teammates Ryan Bourque and Kelsey Tessier within the Rangers organization. Marchessault began his professional career in 2011–12 with the Whale.
On October 9, 2011, in his second professional game, Marchessault scored the game-winning shootout goal against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He scored his first professional non-shootout goal on October 22, in a game against the Springfield Falcons. In his first professional season, Marchessault tied for the Whale team lead with 64 points, leading the team with 40 assists and adding 24 goals.
Columbus Blue Jackets (2012–2013)
After the 2011–12 season, Marchessault did not re-sign with the Whale, instead signing a three-year, entry-level contract as a free agent with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He played the following season for Columbus' AHL affiliate, the Springfield Falcons, leading the team in scoring and being named a First Team AHL All-Star.
In his second season with Columbus, on March 5, 2014, that season's trade deadline, he was traded with Dalton Smith to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for Dana Tyrell and Matt Taormina.
Tampa Bay Lightning (2014–2016)
On April 11, 2015, the Lightning called Marchessault up from the AHL's Syracuse Crunch to replace an ill Jonathan Drouin in the final game of the regular season. Upon his call-up to the NHL, Marchessault had played in 64 games with Syracuse, leading the team with 41 assists and 64 points. He was also second on the team in goals (23) and tied for second in power play goals (6). On April 11, he scored his first career NHL goal and point in a Tampa Bay's 3–2 shootout victory over the visiting Boston Bruins; he was also named the game's first star by the attending media. The next day, on April 12, the Lightning reassigned Marchessault to Syracuse to join them for the remainder of the regular season and the playoffs. After the Crunch were eliminated from the 2015 AHL playoffs, Marchessault was recalled to practice with the team as one of the "Black Aces," an extra player to fill in for possible injuries on the roster. As a result of Ryan Callahan's emergency appendectomy, Marchessault made his Stanley Cup playoff debut in a 4–1 Lightning's win over the Montreal Canadiens, eliminating the latter from the playoffs.
On June 28, 2015, the Lightning re-signed Marchessault to a one-year, two-way contract. Marchessault appeared in two Stanley Cup playoffs games with the Lightning. He also appeared in two games during the 2014–15 regular season, recording one goal. This was his first career goal, which was scored on April 11, 2015. In addition, Marchessault played in 68 AHL games with the Syracuse Crunch, ranking sixth in the league in assists (43).
After three seasons within the Lightning organization, Marchessault left as a free agent and signed a two-year, one-way contract with the Florida Panthers on July 1, 2016. In the 2016–17 season, Marchessault got off to a quick start offensively with the Panthers, and enjoyed a break-out season. In becoming one of the best value signings from the previous summer, Marchessault in his first full NHL season led the Panthers with 30 goals in recording 51 points in 75 games. He was the first Panthers player to reach 30 goals since David Booth in 2008–09.
Vegas Golden Knights (2017–2024)