Registered at Sault College

Smooth skating, free wheeling, right-hand shooting defenseman Jackson Jacques is another player with high level junior hockey seasoning to recently commit to the Sault College Cougars of the American Collegiate Hockey Association for the 2023-2024 school year.

The 21-year old Jacques is fresh from a splendid two full seasons of junior hockey performance.

He spent the 2021-2022 season in the Superior International Jr. Hockey League with the Dryden Ice Dogs and, playoffs included, the 5-foot-11, 195 pound Jacques produced five goals, 33 assists, 38 points in 61 games. Jacques, who hails from Sioux Valley Dakota Nation in Griswold, Manitoba, then began the 2022-2023 season with Dryden and had five assists in six games before opting to leave the Ice Dogs so he could play with his younger brother, Jeremiah, for the Peguis Juniors of the Manitoba-based Keystone Jr. Hockey League. And it was a monster season for Jacques with Peguis as he totaled 16 goals, 42 assists, 58 points in just 34 games.

Meanwhile, at the Sault College spring skate camp that was held earlier this month, Jacques was a noticeable standout from his defense position. He showed his pure skating skills with a number of end to end rushes and was a shiny presence in all situations, including on the power play and the penalty kill.

Cougars head scout Charly Murray, who recruited Jacques to attend the tryout camp and made him aware of the number of programs available at Sault College, has no doubt what the slick defender is capable of.

“He is such a pure talent,” Murray relayed to Hockey News North. “This is a young man who was a standout in junior hockey … and I have absolutely no that doubt that Jackson will be a standout with us in the ACHA.”

And Tanner Burton, who is the new head of the Sault College men, had plenty good to say about Jacques when asked by Hockey News North.

“We are thrilled to have Jackson on our roster,” Burton began. “He brings a solid two way presence to our blue line. He is calm with the puck, walks the blue line well, and makes a great first pass. Not only is Jackson a great addition to our hockey team, he is a very well spoken, polite young man, and we believe he will be a great ambassador of Sault Collège.”

Jacques is enrolled in the Motive Power Technician program at Sault College beginning with the fall semester.

Besides Jacques, other newcomers to the Cougars men’s program for the upcoming season include several with a junior A hockey background — defenseman Mason Wesley and forwards Michael Chaffay, Ethan Novello, Kaden Laverdiere and Dylan Winsor.

Wesley (Thunder Bay North Stars) and Winsor (Thunder Bay North Stars) are formerly of the aforementioned Superior International Jr. Hockey League while Chaffay (Soo Thunderbirds), Novello (Soo Thunderbirds) and Laverdiere (Sudbury Cubs) are all alumni of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League. 

In the meantime, among the skaters with a prior junior hockey background and participation who are poised to return to the Cougars for the ’23-24 season are steady defensemen Chase Muswagon (Dryden Ice Dogs, SIJHL) and Jordan Ritchie (Espanola Paper Kings, NOJHL) and high performance forwards Caleb Wood (Soo Eagles and Soo Thunderbirds, NOJHL) and Ethan Esposito (Kemptvile 73s of the Central Canada Hockey League and Wellington Dukes of the Ontario Jr. Hockey League.) Wood, as team captain, led Sault College in scoring during the ’22-23 season and Esposito was close behind.

To be sure, with a number of player signings still ahead, the ’23-24 season looms as a fresh start for the Cougars, who overcame a slow beginning to the ’22-23 campaign by finishing with an overall record of 13-12-1 among Division 2, ACHA competition. Behind the bench, the aforementioned Tanner Burton takes the helm of the Cougars from Mike Hall. Hall, who had been with the Cougars since their debut ACHA season of 2018-2019, had recommended Burton as his successor to Sault College officials.