Peterborough Petes Alumnus Scores Twice In First Period In NHL Debut

/

It was a night to remember for former Peterborough Pete Avery Hayes, who scored twice in the first period of his NHL debut with the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Thursday night.

Hayes is the third player in penguins history to score multiple times in his NHL debut, joining Jake Guentzel (2G on Nov. 21, 2016) and Rob Brown (2G on Oct. 21, 1987). Photo courtesy of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Hayes’s first goal came at 9:18 of the opening period. Penguins defenceman Ilya Solovyov cleared the puck after a faceoff which lead to Hayes blowing by the defence and winning the race to the loose puck for a breakaway. He snapped it past Sabers goaltender Alex Lyon to score his first NHL goal on his first shot of the night.

Hayes was not done making a statement as Penguins defenceman Parker Wotherspoon held the line and dumped the puck into the Sabres' zone. Penguins forward Anthony Mantha gave a one-touch pass to the slot for Hayes and the latter snapped it home for his second goal of the period to give the Penguins a 2-1 lead. Pittsburgh eventually defeated the Sabres 5-2.

“Honestly, I can't say much right now. I kind of blacked out but it was a big goal for the team which is most important,” said Hayes about his first goal.

Hayes is a two-time OHL Champion with the then Hamilton Bulldogs in 2022 and the Peterborough Petes in 2023. He was traded to the Petes from Hamilton on Jan. 7, 2023. He scored 16 goals and 20 assists in 32 regular-season games for the Petes. The Westland, Mich.-born forward tacked on another 12 goals and seven assists in 22 playoff games, en route to a championship with Peterborough.

Hayes went undrafted in the NHL. He signed a two-year deal with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons. He accepted a contract as a free agent with Pittsburgh on March 13.

On the day after his NHL debut, he was reassigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

@ptbo_canada #duet with @Pittsburgh Penguins #NHL What a debut for former @Peterborough Petes, Avery Hayes! #ptbocanada #journalism #news ♬ original sound - Pittsburgh Penguins

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.