A native of Kitchener, Ontario, Scheifele played his junior hockey for Barrie in the Ontario Hockey League, coached at the time by Hawerchuk. It proved to be an ideal marriage of professor and projected ace. (Scheifele was the No. 7 pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, the Jets’ first after relocating from Atlanta.)
“The first time I met him he was trying to convince me to come to Barrie, I was just traded from Saginaw,” Scheifele said in an interview with Sportsnet on July 19, 2018. “Dale pretty much singlehandedly talked to me to come to Barrie just because the way he was, the influence he had. I spent three years with him and learned something new from him every single day, so that was pretty special to have him on my side.”
Historian Andrew Podnieks in his book “Players: The Ultimate A-Z Guide of Everyone Who Has Ever Played in the NHL” rated Hawerchuk one of the premier centers of the 1980s when Gretzky and Mario Lemieux ruled the ice.
“When the Jets selected Hawerchuk with the No. 1 pick in the 1981 NHL Draft — and during his outstanding career — he lived up to that selection every day,” Podnieks wrote. “Unfortunately, to be a great center in the 1980’s — like Hawerchuk — was to go virtually unrecognized because of Gretzky and Lemieux.”
Like Hawerchuk, Scheifele has been showered with accolades. Last season he had an NHL career-high 87 points (39 goals, 48 assists) in 82 games while combining with Kyle Connor for 80 goals to help the Jets (56-22-4) to the Presidents’ Trophy, which is awarded to the team with the best record in the League during the regular season.
Scheifele holds the Jets/Atlanta Thrashers record for goals with 345 and leads Winnipeg in scoring with 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 16 games this season.
“Mark is an unbelievable teammate and human,” Jets defenseman Logan Stanley said after Scheifele passed Blake Wheeler in a 4-1 against the Nashville Predators in Winnipeg on Oct. 18. “It’s incredible to watch what he does every night.”
