There’s something familiar about playing hockey in Toronto for Gabe Perreault.
Must be the family affair.
His father Yanic was once, twice, three times a Maple Leaf in a 12-year span.
“He talked about being here a couple of his times in his career and he really liked it,” 20-year-old Gabe said Wednesday morning before his New York Rangers took on Toronto. “It’s a big hockey town, he loved playing in front of the fans and it will be cool for me to play here for the first time.”
Yanic, a 5-foot-11 centre, paid his dues after being a mid-round pick of the Leafs in 1991 from the QMJHL, where he had 185 points his draft year in Trois Rivieres. He spent three AHL seasons in St. John’s before his big-league debut with the Pat Burns-coached Leafs.
He lasted 13 games with six points before a trade to the Los Angeles Kings, where he got plenty of opportunity in the middle when Wayne Gretzky was dealt.
Pat Quinn re-acquired him for the Leafs in 1999 for Jason Podollan and a third-round pick, but Perreault ended up a free agent with Montreal a couple of years later.
In 2006, needing help on the draw, a third Toronto general manager and coach — John Ferguson Jr. and Paul Maurice — scooped him a third time. A trade with Phoenix had an unfortunate twist for the Leafs as the second rounder that went west eventually ended up in Nashville’s possession, used on future Norris Trophy winner Roman Josi.
“My dad probably has (souvenirs) of his time in Toronto in a box somewhere at home,” Gabe said. “He kept a little bit of everything (from six NHL teams and 900-plus games).”
Gabe was born in Sherbrooke, Que., but adopted U.S. citizenship and gained prominence as a first-round pick winger in 2023 after a 108-point, two-year career at Boston College and, before that, the national development program. Perreault was fast-tracked to a significant role with the Rangers as their season went south and other young players were promoted.
“(Yanic) had a huge influence, my coach for a long time growing up and I still talk to him daily, about hockey or whatnot. I was the youngest (older brother Jacob is in Anaheim’s system, Jeremy is a coach) so having family members has helped me a lot,” Gabe said.
He recently has been on the left side of the Rangers’ first line with team scoring leader Mika Zibanejad and Alexis Lafreniere. Perreault has 20 points in 38 games, though the learning curve for the conference’s last-place team is a difficult one.
“He’s getting better with every game,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “Him and Mika have developed a little bit of chemistry and I think Mika has been a great mentor for him, how he talks to him and how he helps with his overall two-way game.
“Gabe’s been trying to play the game the right way, he has good instincts and a high hockey IQ.”
Sullivan can see Gabe had gained from Yanic’s insider tips that other young NHLers aren’t privy to.
“My college coach used to say ‘they don’t grow up like the neighbours, right?’ There’s no substitute for genetics, so Gabe has been a benefactor of that.”
X: @sunhornby