GATINEAU, QUE.: On the eve of his QMJHL rookie season, Fall River’s Jayden Tillman is ready to take the next step.
For the 15-year-old defenceman–who will turn 16 in November–what began at the Gatineau Olympiques rookie camp has turned into something much bigger, a spot with the club as he prepares to begin his first season in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL).
“It was a super great feeling,” Tillman told The Laker News on Thursday afternoon of finding out he had made the Olympiques. “I couldn’t be more happy to be a part of the Olympics.”
Tillman was selected by Gatineau in the fourth round, 57th overall, at the 2026 QMJHL Entry Draft.
The right-shot defenceman spent last season with the Bishop Kearney Selects U15 program, where he recorded seven goals and 18 assists for 25 points in 65 regular-season games, adding one assist in three playoff games.
The Olympiques’ selection of Tillman came after a season in which he continued to draw attention for his skating, physical presence and defensive game. Gatineau ultimately brought him into rookie camp, where he was among the players who earned an opportunity to continue on to the organization’s main camp.
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The main camp proved to be another step in a process Tillman knew wasn’t finished.
“My reaction was very happy, but I knew that the job wasn’t done yet,” he said. “Obviously, it’s a good accomplishment making the main camp, but my goal wasn’t just to make it. It was to make the team.”
He did exactly that.
And since that time he has remained with the Olympiques heading into the regular season.
Now, the Fall River product is preparing for the realities of playing major junior hockey as one of the younger players in the league.
Tillman knows there may be nights when he is in the lineup and others when he watches from the sidelines, but he is embracing the opportunity to learn.
“The coaches have told me to expect being a 16 year old, really to just develop and have experience in the league and to learn from all the vets and everyone around you,” he said.
For Tillman, development will be the focus whenever he gets the opportunity to play.
“I think what I’m going to do is keep it simple, trust the process and just learn from everyone around me,” he said. “And always, always give 101%.”
That approach could be particularly important as Tillman adjusts to the speed, size and physicality of the QMJHL.
Rather than worrying about how many games he plays, the young defenceman is looking at each opportunity as another chance to improve.
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The Olympiques open their 2026-27 regular season at home Saturday, Sept. 19, when they host the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies at the Centre Slush Puppie. They will then play their second game of the weekend Sunday afternoon, Sept. 20, against the Shawinigan Cataractes, also at home.
And while the season opener is just days away, Tillman already has one game circled on the calendar.
December 6.
That’s when the Olympiques are scheduled to face the Halifax Mooseheads, giving Tillman an opportunity to return to Nova Scotia and play in front of friends and family at Scotiabank Centre.
“That game, I’m really, really excited to play in front of all of my friends,” he said.
There is another game that carries a little extra meaning.
Gatineau will meet the Rimouski Océanic during the season, giving Tillman a chance to face fellow Fall River product Max Brien, who recently earned a spot with the Océanic. The two have grown up playing with and against each other.
“That’s another game I’m quite excited to play against Rimouski,” Tillman said.
“I’ve grown up playing with and against Max, hanging out with him on and off the ice. So I think it’ll be really, really fun and cool to play against him.”
For now, though, the excitement is focused on what comes next.
After making it through rookie camp, earning a spot at main camp and ultimately sticking with the Olympiques, Tillman is ready to begin the next chapter. And, whenever his number 6 is called, he’s ready to make the most of the opportunity.
