Here's a re-post of something I posted a couple weeks ago in the 2024 Draft megatread... (since, in my mind, it really says a lot about the guy we drafted at #9)
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This is pretty cool. Hopefuly it's not old news ...
Quote:
Zayne Parekh makes overachieving look like just another day at the rink.
Parekh was named the top defenseman in the Canadian Hockey League this season after he led the Ontario Hockey League at the position and was tied for sixth among all players with 96 points (36 goals, 63 assists) in 66 games for Saginaw. It was the third-most points in a season by a 17-year-old defenseman in the league, behind Bruce Cassidy (111 points, 1982-83) and John Slaney (97 points, 1989-90). His 36 goals were second to Slaney (38, 1989-90) among defensemen his age.
That comes after his 21 goals last season were the most ever by a 16-year-old OHL defenseman.
Parekh, who turned 18 on Feb. 15, also achieved something else at age 16: his high school diploma.
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Saginaw coach Chris Lazary, who has worked in the OHL since 2014, said he's never been around a player as driven as Parekh at that young an age.
"I've never seen anything like it," he said. "I couldn't believe it, but then when you get to know the kid, you're not shocked. He had that plan where he wanted to get his high school done sooner rather than later, so when he did come into this league, he could come in in the morning to work on his strength, he could get on the ice extra and work on his shot, he could get into a coach's office and go through video. He had that kind of plan."
Parekh said having time that would have been spent juggling math and science classes to instead work on and off the ice has helped speed his development.
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https://www.nhl.com/news/topic/nhl-d...d-to-nhl-draft