New York Rangers winger Gabe Perreault has always been a lightning rod in the hockey prospect community. An undersized winger without elite skating, Perreault fell to the 23rd selection of the 2023 NHL Draft despite setting the record for most points in the history of the U.S. Men’s National Team Development Program. Now, Gabe Perreault’s production is earning significant praise.
After a strong finish to the 2025-26 campaign with the New York Rangers, at least one prospect evaluator is high on his future. Chris Peters, who writes about the NHL Draft for Flo Hockey, went to bat for Perreault on the most recent edition of “The Athletic Hockey Show” podcast. His excellent finish is at least one reason the Rangers weren’t even more aggressive in looking for winger talent this off-season.
Peters was a guest on the most recent edition of “The Athletic Hockey Show” podcast.
“Gabe Perreault was arguably a more impactful rookie than Nikita Kucherov was,” Peters said. “I don’t think he’s going to be Kucherov-level points. I’m not saying that. He is one of the most intelligent players on this list.”
Young winger draws significant praise from the prospect gurus after a strong NHL finish.
Scott Wheeler, who writes about NHL prospects for The Athletic, ranked him No. 19 on his Top 100 list of drafted NHL prospects.
“He made a ton of plays on that Rangers team towards the end of the season,” Wheeler said on the podcast.
Peters went so far as to suggest that Gabe Perreault’s potential could match some of the league’s best producers.
“At the top of his projection, I do think he can be a 100-point player in the league,” he said.
Perreault finished the season in New York with 27 points in 49 games. While he did spend part of the year in AHL Hartford, he produced there as well. Perreault had 17 points in 20 games before finishing the year with the Rangers. He did the vast majority of his damage after the Olympic Break. The Rangers, a nightmarish 22-29-6 by the Olympic break, finished strong with a 12-10-3 record. In those 25 games, Perreault chipped in nine goals and 10 assists for 19 points.
Perreault joined up with former No. 1 overall selection Alexis Lafreniere and center Mika Zibanejad in the final 25 games for 262 minutes at five-on-five. The Rangers won 53.13 percent of the high-danger chances while outscoring their opponents 14-10 with that line on the ice, per Natural Stat Trick.
The arrow is trending up on Gabe Perreault’s potential.
He’s praised not for his size or his speed, but his cleverness, hockey IQ and compete-level. He has the potential, according to Peters, to make the players he plays with better.
Perreault is expected to start the season in the Rangers’ top six forward group, though there are other questions. First, will Perreault continue playing with Zibanejad and Lafreniere? The trio showed some significant chemistry as the season wound down. With the acquisition of Pavel Dorofeyev, the Rangers may choose to put Perreault’s brilliant playmaking skills with their new goal-scoring toy.
Second, will Perreault feature on the top power play unit? He spent more time, primarily, with the second unit last season. The Rangers’ trades of Artemi Panarin in February and Vincent Trocheck earlier this month mean changes are coming to the top unit. Still, at least one of those spots likely belongs to newly acquired winger Pavel Dorofeyev, a two-time 30-goal scorer. The other spot, based on last season’s finish, likely belongs to Lafreniere.
Lafreniere finished last season with six power-play goals from Feb. 26 onward, leading the Rangers after the Olympic break. In that span, Lafreniere tied for fourth in the NHL in power-play goals behind only Wyatt Johnston (nine), Jake DeBrusk (eight) and John Tavares (seven). Playing close to the net, it might be difficult for Perreault to dislodge Lafreniere. Perreault playing on the second unit would potentially limit his point production from Peters’ lofty expectations.
Rangers fans spent most of last season miserable. One person’s opinion shouldn’t change everything, but it should lead to renewed eyes on Gabe Perreault’s potential entering next season.
Prospect Expert: Rangers Winger Carries 100-Point Potential