Jake O'Brien & Zayne Parekh each made franchise history with their performances on Sunday of Family Day Weekend.
On a Sunday afternoon of high-scoring affairs, Jake O'Brien and Zayne Parekh were each able to make franchise history for their respective teams.
2007-born rookie Jake O'Brien made Brantford Bulldogs history yesterday, breaking Arthur Kaliyev's record for most points by a rookie. O'Brien now holds the record for most points by a rookie in Bulldogs history, and there are still 14 games left in the season.
O'Brien scored twice against the Niagara IceDogs in a 5-1 win. His first goal came just 4:35 into the first period, as he banked in a rebound from the shot of Marek Vanacker. Vanacker picked up the puck for his linemate, ensuring the record-breaking goal puck was secured.
O'Brien is tied for the league lead in rookie scoring, and he leads all 2007-born players by a 13-point margin.
Draft eligible defenceman Zayne Parekh just keeps piling on the points, with another multi-point performance on Sunday versus North Bay.
His goal and assist makes Parekh the franchise leader in single-season points by a defenceman, which was originally set by Patrick McNeill in the 2005-2006 season. Parekh now has 79 points on the season, good for third in league scoring among all players.
Parekh is doing all of this — and he just turned eighteen-years-old. He's been projected in the top half of the first round by many scouts, but as of late he's been discussed as a top ten pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
The Nobleton, Ontario-native is certainly having a season for the ages. For comparison, Parekh currently has more goals than first-round draft pick Easton Cowan — and he's a defenceman.
Parekh could turn out to be a very special player, potentially among the company of players like Quinn Hughes. His offensive creativity is off the charts, and he has the potential to be that number one defenceman and power play quarterback at the professional level.