Saint Paul Jack Peart’s junior season is gone after his team lost to Denver 5-4 in overtime last Friday. With that, the Minnesota-born defenseman and the Wild have reached an agreement on a three-year entry-level contract that will begin in the 2024–25 campaign.
Peart, 20, was a three-year player for the Huskies at St. Cloud State University, where he finished with eight goals and 55 points in 109 games.
Over his three years at Grand Rapids High School, the Wild’s 2021 second-round selection scored 32 goals and 83 points in 68 career games. Peart continued on to play for the USHL’s Fargo Force after graduating from high school. Peart played in 29 games over two years in Fargo, scoring 17 points and one goal.
Following his 11 goals and 35 points in 18 games for Grand Rapids in 2021, Peart was crowned the winner of the Reed Larson Award and the 2021 Minnesota Mr. Hockey. The best male high school hockey player receives the Mr. Hockey Award, while Minnesota’s best defenseman receives the Reed Larson Award.
Peart, who was selected by the Wild with the 54th overall pick in the 2021 draft, hasn’t scored a lot of points in college hockey, but neither has Brock Faber, who Wild supporters have watched so far have a tremendous impact in the NHL.
The five-foot-11 defenseman has outstanding attacking and defensive instincts and skates with ease. Peart has run an NHL power play before, but he probably won’t do so now. Every year, he has consistently been among the best penalty kills.
Peart participated in the 2019 Five Nations Tournament in Germany as a member of the USA’s U17 National Team. In 2021–22 and 2022–23, he participated in the U20 World Juniors teams for Team USA. In those two years, Peart played with Charlie Stramel, a Wild prospect, and with Faber in the 2021–2022 campaign.
Aside from skating, his higher attribute is his hockey IQ. These are both excellent transferable skills to the NHL. Although Peart may require more time in the AHL to develop into an NHL-caliber defenseman, he still has a bright future.
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