Mike Pereira inks deal with Bridgeport
West Haven’s Mike Pereira has managed to stay relatively
local as a hockey player since leaving Notre Dame-West Haven for the New
England prep school circuit years ago.
His four years at UMass resulted in 107 career points and
two Hockey East All-Academic selections before beginning his pro career on an
amateur tryout with Worcester of the AHL last March.
Pereira’s first professional contract, a one-year, two-way
deal with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, should bring him a few miles from his
home this winter. The AHL contract stipulates he’ll either be in Bridgeport or
the New York Islanders’ ECHL affiliate in Stockton, California.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to play hockey in front of
some family and friends,” Pereira said. “You can’t ask for much more, right?”
Pereira played at South Kent and Avon Old Farms before
accepting a scholarship to UMass, where he was one of the Minutemen’s top
scoring threats the past four years. A 5-foot-11, 180-pound forward, he scored
53 career goals in Amherst, including career bests of 17 goals and 17 assists
as a sophomore.
Although considered a professional prospect even before he
enrolled at UMass, his NHL Entry Draft eligibility passed without a single team
taking a flyer.
There was some interest from Worcester and a few ECHL teams,
Pereira said, but the chance to play in Bridgeport was a perfect opportunity.
He’ll also follow the same path as his older brother, Joe, now an assistant
coach at UConn. Joe Pereira, undrafted while at Boston University, also signed
an ATO with Worcester immediately after his college season ended before inking
a deal with Bridgeport the following summer.
“It’s funny how that all works out,” Mike Pereira said.
The next several
weeks for Pereira will include workouts with area professionals at Northford
Ice Pavilion before training camp in September, either with the Islanders or
Sound Tigers.
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