Jayden Perron dazzles with a hat trick in UND's 10-0 exhibition win
Oct. 7—GRAND FORKS — Jayden Perron was one of the best passers and setup men in the United States Hockey League the last two seasons.
He let Ralph Engelstad Arena know Saturday night he can shoot the puck, too.
The freshman winger had a dazzling introduction to college hockey during UND's 10-0 exhibition win over the University of Manitoba in front of 11,692 fans.
Perron had more shots on goal (seven) than the Bisons (six).
The Winnipegger scored three times, sending a laser to the corner of the net on each of them.
He also drew two penalties for good measure.
"He's got God-given ability," UND coach Brad Berry said. "Combine that with his passion and compete and hockey sense. . . you put all those together and that's a pretty good player. He doesn't waste a shift. He's got other good players around him. But at the end of the day, he's a difference-maker. We're going to be playing against tougher competition down the line. But it's nice to know he's on our bench."
All three of Perron's goals came during UND's seven-goal second period.
"It was crazy with all the fans there," said Perron, whose family drove down from Winnipeg for the game. "It made it pretty special. It took a little bit to settle in, but it was a lot of fun.
"Obviously, with all the fans there, it gets you fired up to try to score for them."
In all, 15 players tallied at least a point in the exhibition.
Jackson Blake had two goals and four points. Owen McLaughlin scored a goal and had four points. Jackson Kunz scored twice. Jake Schmaltz and Dylan James each had a goal. Defenseman Logan Britt (three assists) and forward Hunter Johannes (two assists) also had multi-point games.
It marked UND's most lopsided win in any competition since a 10-0 regular-season victory over Yale on Nov. 1, 2003. It was UND's largest exhibition win on record.
"I think it's a good start," Berry said. "Our main message was about our play away from the puck and making sure we're sound defensively. We'll have enough players to create offense, whether it's five-on-five or power play. We're just making sure we're cohesive as a five-man unit. I thought, for the most part, we did a pretty good job of that and we have to continue to do that. It gets tougher. At the end of the day, we still have a lot of work to do."
UND opens the regular season Friday against Army in the Ice Breaker Tournament in Ralph Engelstad Arena. It hosts Wisconsin on Saturday.
"We're happy with the result today," Perron said. "There will be a lot bigger games and it will be a lot harder from here on out. We're going to prepare for that and get ready for that."
Perron, a righty, played left wing on UND's top line with center Cameron Berg and right wing Riese Gaber.
Although Perron is known as a pass-first player and Gaber a shooter, the roles were reversed against Manitoba.
"I think I've definitely learned from the other guys on the team," Perron said. "Obviously, you see Gaber every day in practice ripping pucks. I've taken some things from him. We've been working on our shots in practice a lot, so I can take different techniques and things he's doing."
UND's players weren't surprised to see the performance from the 5-foot-9, 160-pound Carolina Hurricanes third-round draft pick.
"We all expect it," McLaughlin said. "He's been playing really well. He works really hard. He skates all the time. He's going to be a great player."
