Beast Acquire Electrifying Scorer and NCAA Grad Dufour
Brampton Beast Media Release
BRAMPTON, ONTARIO – The Brampton Beast, ECHL affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens, announced today that prolific NCAA talent Kevin Dufour has signed a Standard Player Contract (SPC) with the Beast ahead of the upcoming 2017-18 season.
Dufour, 25, is coming off a successful four-year run at Bowling Green University in Ohio from 2014-15 to 2016-17. He appeared in 154 games over the course of his collegiate career and collected points at a torrid pace, including 54 goals and 33 assists for 87 points in the challenging Central Collegiate Hockey Association conference (CCHA).
While wearing the assistant captain’s ‘A’ on his sweater during his final year of college in 2016-17, the Quebec City native had a career year, setting new NCAA career highs in goals (18), assists (12) and points (30) in just 41 games played.
He got his first taste of professional hockey at the end of the 2016-17 season and appeared in nine games for the eventual Eastern Conference champion South Carolina Stingrays. He wasted no time making a name for himself in the professional ranks and collected seven points, including three goals and four assists, in nine games played.
After being held pointless in his first professional game with the Stingrays on March 24, he quickly caught fire and earned an impressive five-game point streak, amassing two goals and six assists in the process.
Prior to his professional and university career, Dufour was a standout for the Carleton Place Canadians in the Central Canada Hockey League in 2012-13, leading his team in goal-scoring with 26 tallies to accompany his 32 assists.
Heading into his first full professional season, Dufour is excited to return to Canada and to play under the Montreal Canadiens’ umbrella
“It’s going to be my first professional season and I’m really excited,” Dufour said.
“Staying in Canada is going to be pretty cool for me. I haven’t played in Canada in the last four years. I’m proud to be home. It’s always been a dream to play for the Montreal Canadiens. To be in their organization means a lot but hopefully I can keep improving and go higher.”
Beast Head Coach Colin Chaulk is excited to see what the skilled forward can bring to the hockey club and believes he has the potential to be an impactful player for the club in 2017-18.
“He possesses NHL speed and has a knack for scoring,” Chaulk said.
“He’s a guy that can play at the front of the net on the power play. He can be really slippery and really sneaky in front of the net. He plays in the hard areas. We believe that the Beast can assist him in reaching his maximum potential.”
