Yanic Perreault’s son also seen as a first-rounder
Besides Dawson Mercer, there are no other Newfoundlanders with a high ranking for the June NHL draft; in fact only one other player from this province — Labrador City native Mark Hillier — who is ranked 197th among North American skaters by Central Scouting.
Hillier, a forward who is committed to play collegiately for NCAA Division One Merrimack College, is in his last year at St. Andrews College, an Ontario prep school.
There is another potential first-rounder with a bit of a connection to Newfoundland.
That’s Jacob Perreault, a forward with the NHL’S Sarnia Sting, ranked 22nd on Mckenzie’s list.
The 17-year-old (his birthday is in April), is the son of centre Yanic Perreault, the leading all-time scorer for the American Hockey League’s St. John’s Maple Leafs.
Yanic Perreault had 276 points (132G, 144A) in 203 games for the AHL Leafs before establishing himself in the NHL, where he played 859 games for Toronto, Los Angeles, Montreal, Nashville, Phoenix and Chicago. He was primarily known as a defensive and faceoff specialist, but nevertheless one who scored 20 or more goals in seven seasons.
Jacob Perreault was born in Montreal when his dad played was with the Canadiens, but played for minor teams in Chicago before joining the Sting; Yanic Perreault has been a development coach with the NHL’S Chicago Blackhawks since 2013.
Jacob, who looks very much like his father and also plays the same position, has 55 points (28G, 27A) in 43 games with the Sting. He has two hockey-playing brothers and an older sister, Liliane, who is her second year playing NCAA hockey at Mercyhurst University, the same Erie, Pa., school that produced Newfoundland Growlers star defenceman Joseph Duszak.