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ROCHESTER — Unbeknownst to Jayden Veney, the men’s hockey coaching staff at Army West Point had its eyes on him for three years.
The Black Knights coaches’ interest in Veney didn’t waver, even through a change at head coach after last season, when Brian Riley retired after 21 seasons and 11-year assistant coach Zach McKelvie moved into that position.
“They said they’ve been watching me since I played at JM, which I didn’t know,” said the 6-foot-7, 225-pound defenseman, a 2024 Rochester John Marshall graduate. “They said they love my size, which is always a good thing to hear and they said they think I’m a great skater who can take over games.”
Veney paid back the Army coaches’ investment on Sunday, when he announced he’ll play his college hockey for the Black Knights. He’ll head to the United States Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., in the fall of 2026.
“They’ve seen me score, they’ve seen me defend,” Veney said. “Telling me that they’ve watched me for that long, it shows how much they want me.”
Before he heads to New York, Veney will head to Ohio. He leaves for Youngstown, Ohio (approximately 70 miles southeast of Cleveland and 70 miles north of Pittsburgh) in three weeks, to play one more season of junior hockey, for the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms.
“They called me and told me they wanted me to be part of their process this year,” Veney said of deciding to play for Youngstown. “They have a lot of great players coming back; we’ll have a great team this year and we’ll make a big push.”
Veney has displayed the versatility in his game over the past three years, as Army’s coaches followed his progression. He had 34 points and
led John Marshall in assists (21) as a junior in 2022-23
, when the Rockets had just 14 players on the roster. Veney was on the ice for 35-plus minutes per game that season, and JM went 14-11-1 despite being undermanned most nights.
He also made big strides as a defenseman over the final four months of this past season, when he helped the Chillwack Chiefs reach the Fred Page Cup Finals, the championship series of the British Columbia Hockey League. He had 13 points in 43 games and was counted on in every situation as the Chiefs made a run to the league finals.
“I’ve always focused on getting the puck and going,” Veney said. “The coaches in Chilliwack, (head) coach (Brian) Maloney, they helped me with my defensive game, making the easy play up the ice instead of trying to make the hard play. They were very helpful; once you get going with it, you’re off and running.”
Once Army expressed a strong interest, Veney had a long discussion with his advisor, with his parents, Dwane and Jackie, and his brother Deontae, an offensive lineman who played four seasons of college football at Division II power Minnesota State University, Mankato, helping the Mavericks reach the national semifinals last fall, in his senior season.
Veney will report to West Point next summer for six weeks of basic training. He’ll do three more weeks of training between his freshman and sophomore years. After an athlete’s sophomore season at a military academy, they have a choice: They may enter the NCAA transfer portal, or they may remain at their academy and are obligated to complete their academic coursework and fulfill their military service commitment.
“I bet it is like this for every athlete who is recruited (by a service academy),” Jayden Veney said. “You think it’s just, go out there and it’s strictly military work, which isn’t a bad thing at all. I’m not afraid of hard work.”
Army went16-20-2 overall last season, and 14-10-2 (fifth place) in 11-team Atlantic Hockey.
“We went out there, I flew out there last week with my parents,” Veney said. “It’s one of the most beautiful college campuses I’ve seen. … And the coaches told me all the stuff you want to hear as a player, that I’ll play a lot and be a big factor in their success. They’re a team on the rise, and I love an underdog. Our JM team had 14 guys; I’m no stranger to underdogs. They thought that was awesome.”
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