‘Slick’ Rangers prospect Gabe Perreault No. 13 in Top-100 ranking

Not that the New York Rangers need any convincing, but The Athletic recently endorsed Gabe Perreault as one of the top NHL prospects ahead of the 2024-25 season. In his most recent rankings of the top-100 prospects under the age of 23 who have yet to establish themselves as an NHL regular, the respected Scott Wheeler listed Perreault No. 13 overall.

That ranking placed Perreault one spot in front of Dallas Stars forward Logan Stankoven, who played in 24 NHL games last season and totaled 14 points (six goals, eight assists), and ahead of his highly-touted Boston College teammates Cutter Gauthier (No. 19) and Ryan Leonard (No. 21).

Perreault was the fifth-highest rated forward in the top-100, with eight defensemen also ahead of him. The only forwards ranked higher than the Rangers first-round pick (No. 23 overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft were Macklin Celebrini (No. 1), the top overall pick by the San Jose Sharks in the 2024 draft, Matvei Michkov (No. 2, Philadelphia Flyers), Ivan Demidov (No. 3, Montreal Canadiens) and Perreault’s BC and Team USA linemate Will Smith (No. 8, Sharks).

“You can say what you will about his linemates at the NTDP and BC,” Wheeler wrote, referring to Smith and Leonard. “But it’s Perreault who holds the program’s single-season points record and it was Perreault who, before missing a few games to injury, led the Eagles in scoring as a freshman for much of last season before finishing with a rare 60-point season anyway.”

Wheeler admitted being “bullish” about Perreault despite his slight frame (5-foot-11, 165 pounds) and perceived skating issues.

“He’s a better skater than he gets credit for, with above-average speed for my money and room to add power and pick up another step as he gets stronger,” Wheeler noted. “Because of his genetics, he should be able to add the necessary weight and strength eventually, too.”

The genetics he refers to come from Gabe being the son of former NHL center Yanic Perreault, who played 14 seasons with six teams. Yanic Perreault was also listed at 5-11, though 20 pounds heavier than his son, at 185 pounds. Yanic was more of a two-way player, one who scored 247 goals and 516 points in 859 NHL games, and was also a top defensive forward year-in and year-out. He also was a force in the face-off circle, winning better than 60 percent of his draws each of his final nine seasons in the League.

Gabe Perreault is much of a scoring threat and dominant offensive player than his father, and needs to work more on his defensive game to be a complete player whenever he arrives in the NHL, perhaps as early as 2025-26.

Perreault who helped BC reach the NCAA championship game before losing to Denver, and who had 10 points in seven games when the United States won the 2024 World Junior Championship, will return to college this year for his sophomore season and is expected to lead USA Hockey into the 2025 WJC.

“Just focused on having another big year at school … hopefully win the national championship and then when that times I’ll probably discuss it with my family, my agent, obviously the Rangers see where they think I’m at, see where I think I’m at and make a decision from there,” Perreault said about his future at Blueshirts development camp earlier this month.

Related: John Vanbiesbrouck shares what makes Gabe Perreault so special

Gabe Perreault highest-ranked Rangers prospect in recent Athletic listing

Perreault had 60 points (19 goals, 41 assists) in 36 games at Boston College last season. He displayed the ability to finish as well as be an elite playmaker.

Wheeler called him a “slick one-on-one player” and a “clever-beyond-belief facilitator and playmaker who plays the game with a light touch and a heady spatial awareness of not only where his teammates are, but where he is in the flow of play (and relative to defenders).”

His mental acuity is something those in the know mention often when discussing Perreault and his strengths. Wheeler noted that one of the things that makes the 19-year-old Rangers forward special is that he has the physical skills to keep up with how fast his brain works on the ice.

Not mentioned here, but something USA Hockey executive and former Rangers goalie John Vanbiesbrouck told Forever Blueshirts recently about Perreault, also stands out.

“The best part about him is that he loves hockey. He just loves the game as much as anybody I’ve seen,” Vanbiesbrouck said on the Rink Rap podcast presented by Forever Blueshirts.

The only other Rangers prospect on The Athletic’s top-100 list was forward Brennan Othmann. The 21-year-old was ranked No. 72 overall and is pegged by Wheeler to be a middle-six forward who puts the puck in the net, contributes on the power-play and plays with “some snarl” due to the “chip he carries on his shoulder on and off the ice.”

“He’s a physical presence when he’s on the ice, a constant threat to lay a big hit, and scrappy and mouthy between whistles,” Wheeler explained. “He’s got great hands around the net and on tips.”

Wheeler added that “Othmann’s got a lethal, masked release that he can get off his blade at multiple points while still maintaining pinpoint accuracy. He’s got a silky first touch into quick hands.”

Despite a crowded group of NHL forwards, Othmann is expected to get a long look in Rangers training camp this fall after scoring 21 goals as a rookie pro last season with the Hartford Wolf Pack in the American Hockey League.

But the wait for Perreault will be at least a year, though Wheeler believes it’ll be worth it for the Rangers because he’s “one of the most talented and offensively intelligent prospects in the game.”

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