As the Rangers continue to struggle for offensive consistency, many are waiting for the Rangers to recall top prospect Gabe Perreault. Even though Perreault is not a savior, he’s a solid top six forward putting up over a point per game with Hartford in the AHL who would fill a big need in the top six. But the Rangers are being cautious with Perreault, and for good reason, wanting to learn from their mistakes with K’Andre Miller, Kaapo Kakko, Alexis Lafreniere, and Braden Schneider. But how cautious is too cautious? Did the pendulum swing too far in the other direction?

Learning lessons from previous top picks

The letter and the subsequent Rangers rebuild failed for many reasons, some within their control and some outside their control. The Rangers couldn’t control that Kakko–the consensus #2 pick in 2019–and Lafreniere–the consensus #1 pick in 2020–didn’t pan out the way other top picks from different years have panned out. The Rangers had the unfortunate luck of picking second in 2019, one pick after Jack Hughes, and first in 2020, two picks behind Tim Stutzle.

As an aside, imagine if things were flipped and the Rangers had the first overall in 2019 and the second overall in 2020?

The way the draft picks panned out was out of their control. But the way they managed all their picks and their development was 100% in their control. Of all the first round picks (Kakko, Lafreniere, Filip Chytil, Lias Andersson, Vitali Kravtsov, K’Andre Miller, and Braden Schneider), the only player with more than 50 AHL games was Chytil–not counting Lias and Kravtsov. Miller, Kakko, and Lafreniere had a combined zero AHL games in their development.

While natural skill, coaching, and roles were factors in their perceived failures as top prospects, spending no time in the AHL was another big factor. This is a big lesson the Rangers learned that has been applied to Brett Berard, Gabe Perreault, and Scott Morrow.

Not every player needs AHL time, mind you. But when it comes to being NHL ready, the Rangers are erring on the side of caution with Perreault. But are they being too cautious?

Strength matters

The issue with Perreault isn’t skill, it’s strength. In both of his recalls over the last two seasons, he was bodied off the puck too easily. Strength is something that takes time to build in the weight room, and not something that can be worked on and learned with game experience.

The Rangers faced a similar issue with Kakko. Though not strength related, Kakko had some issues with how to receive passes on a smaller ice surface. Time in the AHL to adjust would have been a better idea than just throwing him into NHL as an 18 year old. That’s just one example from past top picks.

With Perreault, the Rangers are likely learning from their lessons and being extra cautious. Why throw Perreault into the mix on a team with questionable leadership, underperforming top players, and an expectation that he’s the missing link on the top six? This isn’t fair to him, and it sets him up for failure.

Balancing development and NHL needs

If Perreault is easily bodied, then he’s not going to move the needle for the Rangers just yet. There’s no need to rush him, but there’s also a need to get him into the lineup. Again if the star players on the Rangers aren’t doing anything, then Perreault won’t matter.

Argue all you want about top-six construction, nothing matters if JT Miller is on a 46 point pace and Lafreniere is on a 43 point pace. Only Panarin, barely on pace for a point per game production, and Vincent Trocheck, on a 64 point pace, are pulling their weight. Mika Zibanejad is on a 62 point pace, same as last year, which is fine but certainly not what people had hoped. To be fair, Zibanejad’s role has changed.

This brings us back to Perreault. If the big-four up front are barely pulling their weight, then what good is throwing Perreault, with a strength issue, in the mix? The lines look good on paper, and Perreault is sorely needed on this team, but I find no issue with being cautious.

It’s best to let him develop without sacrificing his future. I think we all realize this isn’t the year for the Rangers.

But are the Rangers being too cautious with Perreault?

The million dollar question is whether the Rangers are being too cautious. This is a fair question that takes human nature into the equation.

Let’s look back to Chris Drury’s first offseason with the Rangers. The Blueshirts desperately needed to fill in their roster with a bit more grit and blue collar type play styles. But Drury overcompensated, focusing on grit without replacing skill lost in the lineup. He’s been trying to find that skill ever since.

This is human nature: When you make a mistake, you sometimes overcompensate and the pendulum swings too far in the other direction. Then you learn from that mistake and find the middle ground. Even NHL GMs are prone to this. It’s human nature.

The opposite end of this spectrum is Brennan Othmann, who we can argue never got a real shot with the Rangers last season. Now he’s too far gone to be a true difference maker with the Blueshirts.

So with Perreault, perhaps Drury is overcompensating, learning from prior lessons but letting the development aspect sway his decisions too much. This approach is painful, since the Rangers are just brutal to watch right now and have a clear hole in the top six.

In all likelihood, the Rangers are being a bit too cautious with Perreault. Strength is clearly a concern, and since that isn’t really a skill that can be taught in game situations, the Rangers need to wait it out. Perreault will be with the Rangers before the season is out, possibly as soon as they are able to get fully healthy and find some cap space, probably by trading Taylor Raddysh. But for now, it’s going to be a painful Rangers top six, as Perreault is the only in-house option to fill the hole in the top six.

Until Perreault is recalled, the Rangers will continue to have a bottom six forward in a top six role. That is the best case scenario. The worst case scenario is, of course, Perreault either doesn’t pan out (unlikely) or is rushed and his confidence is destroyed (far more likely). Given the options, I think the choice is clear.

Mentioned in this article:

More About: