Order of Merit (Central) – Jason Perrier
For more than 30 years, Jason Perrier has played a vital role in developing and promoting hockey in Northwestern Ontario. Currently the president of Hockey Northwestern Ontario (HNO), Jason has been involved in minor hockey his entire life, from playing the sport in Thunder Bay to coaching and now as an administrator.
After coaching for more than 10 years at a variety of levels, Jason joined the Thunder Bay Beavers as an executive and soon became the president of the minor hockey organization, a position he held for 15 years. He joined the HNO Board of Directors in 2005 and served in a variety of roles – as junior chair, development convenor and on the finance committee, to name a few – before he was elected president in 2019.
In his four years in the top job, Jason has worked to make the sport more inclusive and create positive environments to allow young participants develop and grow as players and as people. He also helped the organization navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic and the unprecedented challenges it brought to the game.
Although he has spent most of his career in minor hockey, Jason has also served on the Hockey Canada Governance Committee, was chair of the directorate for the 2012 Dudley Hewitt Cup and chaired several HNO AAA playdowns.
Outside of his dedication to hockey, Jason actively volunteers for multiple organizations. He is the current chair of the Shelter House in Thunder Bay and is on the board of directors for the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium. He has volunteered countless hours and been through adversity, but continuously shows up with a positive attitude, looks at the big picture and ensures everyone is given an equal opportunity.
