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BSH 2023 Community Draft Board, No. 14: Gabe Perreault

We’re back again with another edition of the Community Draft Board, and we’ll cut right to the chase: we’ve got a very interesting prospect on deck today. Gabe Perreault had, by all accounts, a tremendously successful season with the National Team Development Program. The last player for us to profile here on their illustrious top line (with Will Smith and Ryan Leonard), Perreault finished this season with a tidy 177 points in 86 games played, pushing him to fourth on the program’s all-time scoring leaders chart, behind just Jack Hughes, Smith, and Clayton Keller. But despite that excellent resume, Perreault remains a divisive among scouts and other prospect watchers. Let’s dig into that, shall we?

Pre-Draft Rankings:

No. 29 By Sportsnet

No. 31 by EliteProspects

No. 10 (North American Skaters) by NHL Central Scouting

No. 23 by Bob McKenzie

No. 11 by Scott Wheeler

Statistics

What’s there to like?

Immediately, there’s some real flash to Perreault’s game. He was a top scorer in this year’s quite stacked NTDP class, scoring at a rate well over two points per game. It’s no surprise, given that, that his offensive game is one of the more exciting in this top prospect group.

His playmaking ability really pops immediately. He can make these incredibly creative passing plays happen – at times seemingly out of nowhere – and he can do it quickly and with great accuracy. There’s not much panic in his game, and he can find his linemates well to keep a play alive, even under pressure. His shot, too, is a real weapon for him as well. He has a quick, accurate wrist shot that can be effective both in tight and from the perimeter, and he doesn’t need to take a lot of time to get those shots off. Even in catch and release types of plays, he doesn’t need that extra second to dust the puck off after receiving a pass and turning it into a shot, his hands are just that quick. He was a key part of the NTDP’s power play success this season, and there’s every reason to believe that he will be a similar impact player at the professional level.

All of this is facilitated by his excellent hockey sense and vision. He has some physical limitations to his game (more on that later), but with how well he sees the ice and is able to create plays under pressure, he’s been able to compensate for them against bigger, stronger players.

What’s not to like?

One of the more concrete concerns about Perreault falls around where his game might sort of max out. That is, he’s a relatively smaller player (5’11” with a thin frame), and he doesn’t really have to footspeed to help him compensate for that. He may well add more weight and strength as he gets older, but if he remains on the slighter side, that may hurt his overall upside.

But the other knock that we hear is a bit more nebulous. As we mentioned, Perreault was really able to pile up the points this season, but pundits remain split on whether this was due to his own merit or a result of playing alongside Will Smith and Ryan Leonard for the whole of this season. He wasn’t a pure passenger on that line, to be clear, but there are questions about just how much he was driving things on that line, how much one sees him being able to replicate those results in the future in different settings, and that in turn will impact how high they will be willing to rank him. And that’s the hinge, the reason for this wide range in rankings.

How would he fit in the Flyers’ system?

How you answer this question of Perreault’s fit in the organization likely depends on where you fall on that last issue of his true skill level and upside. If you agree with the camp that really highly values his playmaking ability and thinks he can both be a driver on a line and grow and develop into a frame that’s more professionally suitable, you would probably find him to be an excellent addition to the mix for the Flyers. The Flyers aren’t exactly short on wingers in general in their pipeline, but they are in pretty dire need of high-skill players who can set up some of the purer shooters that they already have, and the optimistic read on Perreault would have you believing that he could be exactly that for them. However, if you’re more on the skeptical side with him — seeing him more like the third best player on a very good line, someone who isn’t going to be able to drive a line or contribute at that high of a level once he turns pro — you would likely lean towards the Flyers going a different direction with him. If it sounds like we’re being a little wishy washy here, it’s because we are. For my money, I like his skillset and I think his toolkit is pretty positively projectable, he should be a good pro, but I’m not going to pretend that this opinion is shared across the board. So here we are, presenting all of the sides for you.

Can the Flyers actually get him?

While there isn’t much consensus among pundits about where Perreault should or will be picked, there is at least consensus that it will likely not be inside the top-10. This means, of course, that he should be on the board when the Flyers pick at seven, should he be a player that they really want to target.

What scouts are saying

He’s very creative with his stickhandling and isn’t afraid to take on opposing defensemen one-on-one off the rush. His quick hands allow him to stickhandle his way out of pressure and move the puck to an open teammate to maintain possession. He shoots often, but is smart with selecting the right shots to take. What’s interesting is that it’s like he plays with the mindset of a goalscorer, yet is very accurate with his passes. I would definitely classify him as a playmaker; he thinks and sees the game really well which contributes to his playmaking ability. – Sean Raggio, The Hockey Writers

Perreault is an extremely skilled and intelligent winger who can make a ton of positive things happen inside the offensive zone. Perreault makes highly-creative and unique dekes and passes with the puck at a high rate, both off the perimeter and in small areas. His puck game is clear NHL power-play quality, and he will score as a pro. The issues on Perreault’s game is his 5-foot-11 frame and his lack of footspeed. He shows good second effort and can win puck battles at the junior level, although whether he can do that versus men is a concern. His hockey sense is so elite though that I think he can overcome those issues and become a very good top six winger. – Corey Pronman, The Athletic


One player off the poll, another player on. Welcome, Calum Ritchie!

Ritchie is a skilled, offensive centerman with pro size and top-tier hockey IQ. When he is at his best, he’ll dazzle fans and his opponents with silky-smooth stickwork, allowing him to maneuver through crowds and into the scoring areas of the ice. Once he is in those areas, he often looks to find the perfect way to finish the play, whether it’s a heavy wrist shot or a pass to an open teammate. He is quite adept at surveying his options and executing based on the decisions he makes. He’s the type of player that makes things happen almost every time he’s on the ice, one way or another. – Devin Little, The Hockey Writers


Previously on the 2023 Community Draft Board…

  1. Connor Bedard
  2. Adam Fantilli
  3. Matvei Michkov
  4. Leo Carlsson
  5. Will Smith
  6. Zach Benson
  7. Oliver Moore
  8. Dalibor Dvorsky
  9. Ryan Leonard

10.   Eduard Sale

T-11. Axel Sandin-Pellikka

T-11. David Reinbacher

13.   Nate Danielson

14.   Gabe Perreault

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