Phillip Danault Bio
Phillip Danault is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who currently plays for the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). Born on February 24, 1993, in Victoriaville, Quebec, he was selected 26th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. Standing 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighing roughly 200 pounds, Danault is recognized across the league for his dependable defensive play, faceoff work, and commitment to a two-way game. Across his career, he has also represented the Montreal Canadiens and earned a reputation as a reliable shutdown center.
Early Life and Background
Phillip Danault was born on February 24, 1993, in Victoriaville, Quebec, Canada, to parents Alain and Michelle Danault. His mother works as a nurse, while his father previously served as the public address announcer for the Victoriaville Tigres of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Growing up in a hockey-centric household in Victoriaville, Danault was surrounded by the sport from a young age and developed an early love for the game.
Danault began his organized career with Hockey Bois-Francs, where he was named captain of his team across multiple age groups. For the 2008–09 season, he joined the Trois-Rivières Estacades of the Ligue de hockey Midget AAA du Québec, contributing offensively as his team reached the final of the Jimmy-Ferrari Cup. His steady development in minor hockey paved the way for a top selection in the QMJHL draft by his hometown Victoriaville Tigres.
Path to Hockey
Selected ninth overall by the Victoriaville Tigres in the QMJHL draft, Danault quickly grew into one of the league’s most reliable two-way forwards. During the 2010–11 season, he set new career highs in production and earned multiple league honours. He was named Player of the Game during the 2010 Subway Super Series against the Russian juniors and was selected to represent Team Cherry at the 2011 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game. In January 2011, the NHL’s Central Scouting Bureau ranked him 23rd among North American skaters.
Danault was appointed captain of the Tigres and captured the Guy Carbonneau Trophy as the QMJHL’s best defensive forward. Those performances convinced the Chicago Blackhawks to select him 26th overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, launching his path toward professional hockey.
Phillip Danault Career
Early Career (2011–2013)
After attending the Blackhawks’ 2011 training camp, Danault returned to the QMJHL for the 2011–12 season and posted 53 assists and 71 points in 62 games, both career highs. Following the Tigres’ elimination from the President’s Cup playoffs, he was assigned to the Blackhawks’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, where he tallied two assists in seven games.
Midway through the 2012–13 QMJHL season, Danault was traded to the Moncton Wildcats in exchange for forward Gabriel Gagné and draft picks. He was placed on a productive top line with Dmitrij Jaškin and Ivan Barbashev, and the trio combined for 22 goals in their first eight games. After the Wildcats were eliminated from the 2013 postseason, Danault returned to Rockford to finish the AHL campaign.
Chicago Blackhawks Breakthrough (2013–2016)
Danault began the 2013–14 season in the AHL and recorded six goals and 20 assists in his first full professional campaign. After a strong showing in the Blackhawks’ 2014 Rookie Tournament, he earned preseason action before returning to Rockford for the 2014–15 season. Recalled to Chicago on November 21, 2014, he made his NHL debut the following night against the Edmonton Oilers. He finished that regular season with 13 goals and 25 assists for 38 points in 70 AHL games, despite later revealing he had played through a torn labrum.
After offseason surgery, Danault returned to Rockford in December 2015 and was quickly recalled to the NHL, where he recorded his first NHL point with an assist on Andrew Shaw’s goal in a 4–3 win over the San Jose Sharks on December 20. He scored his first NHL goal on January 8, 2016, in a 3–1 win over the Buffalo Sabres. On February 26, 2016, he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens, along with a 2018 second-round pick, in exchange for Dale Weise and Tomáš Fleischmann.
Montreal Canadiens Era (2016–2021)
Joining the Canadiens midway through the 2015–16 season, Danault appeared in 21 games and recorded three goals and two assists, then signed a two-year contract extension that July. On January 13, 2018, he was stretchered off the ice after being struck in the head by a Zdeno Chára shot against the Boston Bruins, but he was released from hospital the following day. He later agreed to a three-year extension with an average annual value of $3.08 million.
The 2018–19 season was a breakout year, as Danault set a career high with 53 points and recorded his first NHL hat-trick in a 4–3 overtime win over the Vegas Golden Knights on December 20. He finished seventh in Selke Trophy voting, awarded to the NHL’s best defensive forward. In 2020–21, his final contract year, he posted five goals and 24 points in 53 games and reached the top 10 in Selke voting again while helping Montreal reach the 2021 Stanley Cup Final, where they fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games.
Los Angeles Kings Era (2021–Present)
After becoming an unrestricted free agent, Danault signed a six-year, $33 million contract with the Los Angeles Kings on July 28, 2021. In 2021–22, he set a new career high with 27 goals and helped the Kings clinch their first playoff berth since 2018. Facing the Edmonton Oilers in the first round of the 2022 playoffs, he scored the tiebreaking goal late in the third period of Game 1 to seal a 4–3 victory, and finished the series with three goals and two assists in seven games.
On March 9, 2023, Danault scored his 99th and 100th NHL goals in a 5–2 win over the Colorado Avalanche and later received the Daryl Evans Youth Hockey Service Award for his work with the Kings’ Learn-to-Play programming. On March 3, 2024, he recorded his second career hat-trick in a 5–1 win against the New Jersey Devils, further cementing his value as a two-way contributor.
Driving Style and Strengths
Danault is widely regarded as one of the NHL’s premier defensive forwards, earning consistent top-10 consideration for the Selke Trophy throughout his career. His strengths include elite faceoff reliability, responsible positional play, and the ability to neutralize opposing top lines. He complements those defensive skills with a strong hockey IQ, quiet offensive production, and dependable penalty-killing duties, making him a versatile two-way center.
Notable Events and Milestones
Among his signature moments, Danault scored his first NHL goal on January 8, 2016, against the Buffalo Sabres, notched his first career hat-trick on December 20, 2018, against the Vegas Golden Knights, and reached the 100-goal milestone on March 9, 2023, versus the Colorado Avalanche. He also recorded his second hat-trick on March 3, 2024, against the New Jersey Devils, and played a key role in the Montreal Canadiens’ run to the 2021 Stanley Cup Final.
Phillip Danault Career Wins
Phillip Danault has built a career defined more by defensive excellence and two-way consistency than by goal-scoring volume. Across his NHL stints with the Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens, and Los Angeles Kings, he has tallied more than 100 regular-season goals and has been a regular top-10 Selke Trophy candidate. He has also been recognized with team and community honours, including the Daryl Evans Youth Hockey Service Award in 2023.
Los Angeles Kings Highlights
Since joining the Kings in 2021, Danault has been a steady two-way presence and a key part of the team’s return to playoff contention. In 2021–22, he set a career high with 27 goals and helped Los Angeles clinch its first postseason berth since 2018, scoring the series-clinching goal against Edmonton in Game 1. He has continued to log heavy minutes as a top-line center, defensive specialist, and penalty-killer.
Other Wins & Performances
Earlier in his career, Danault captured the Guy Carbonneau Trophy as the QMJHL’s best defensive forward and was a key contributor on the Moncton Wildcats’ top line during the 2012–13 season. He also represented Canada at multiple international events, winning gold with the under-18 team at the 2010 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup and later playing in the 2013 World Junior Championships and the 2025 IIHF World Championship.
Phillip Danault Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Danault comes from a close-knit Quebec family with deep ties to the local hockey community. His mother, Michelle, works as a nurse, and his father, Alain, previously served as the public address announcer for the Victoriaville Tigres, the QMJHL team Phillip would later captain. That strong connection to the game played an influential role in shaping his path to professional hockey.
Personal Life
Phillip Danault married his longtime partner, fellow Québécois Marie-Pierre Fortin, during the 2018 offseason. The couple has two children, a son and a daughter, and continues to make his home in North America while pursuing his NHL career.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025–26 season began as a difficult stretch for Phillip Danault with the Los Angeles Kings, as he failed to score a goal in his first 30 games and managed only five assists during that span. By early December 2025, reports surfaced that he had requested a trade, and on December 19, 2025, the Kings dealt him back to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2026 second-round pick. The move marked an emotional return to the organization where he had spent the most productive years of his career.
Early in his second stint with Montreal, Danault posted a multi-assist effort in a win over the Dallas Stars on January 4, 2026, including the 400th point of his NHL career. He scored his first goal of the season on January 20, helping the Canadiens to their first win over the Minnesota Wild since 2019. He finished the regular season with six goals and six assists in 45 games, used primarily as a bottom-six defensive forward.
Danault continued in that role as Montreal advanced through the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs, scoring his first goal of the postseason on May 18 in a 3–2 series-clinching win over the Buffalo Sabres in Game 7 of the second round. His steady two-way play and veteran presence remain valuable assets for a young Canadiens team pushing deeper into the spring.
