Rush add McCormick, Perl

RAPID CITY, S.D. –The Rapid City Rush, ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League’s Arizona Coyotes, announced the signing of forward Darren McCormick and defenseman Derek Perl for the 2021-22 season.

McCormick arrives in Rapid City for what will be his first full season in the ECHL. A native of Buffalo, New York, he has played six seasons as a professional, the majority of which have taken place in the Sourthern Professional Hockey League. Over 160 career SPHL games, he has recorded 137 points (83g-54a). He led the league with 20 goals in 41 games for the Pensacola Ice Flyers in 2020-21 and was a member of Pensacola’s President’s Cup championship team.

McCormick has seven career ECHL games across stints with the Cincinnati Cyclones and Elmira Jackals. He also played part of the 2019-20 season for Briançon in France’s top professional hockey league, Ligue Magnus, where he had 11 points (6g-5a) over 15 games.

Perl has signed for what will be his first ECHL experience. The 29-year-old has played three seasons in the SPHL, all of which took place with the Huntsville Havoc. In 147 career SPHL games, Perl has 64 points (17g-47a), and has been a member of two President’s Cup championship teams.

Perl has also played overseas in France for Cergy-Pontoise, where he had 18 points (5g-13a) in 26 games in the 2019-20 season. He appeared in 42 games for Huntsville in 2020-21 and had 10 points (3g-7a).