Big night for Gabe Perreault, Rangers prospects in 6-3 Hartford win
Gabe Perreault recorded his first professional multi-point game, and was one of several New York Rangers prospects to stand out in a 6-3 win for Hartford of the American Hockey League on Saturday.
Perreault, New York’s first-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, scored his second goal in six games and added a power-play assist against Springfield on Saturday. After opening the AHL season with an assist in his first game and a goal in his second, Perreault was scoreless in three straight outings before his multi-point effort on the road in Springfield.
The 20-year-old handed the puck off to Brett Berard on a first-period power play Saturday, and picked up an assist when Berard wired a shot home from between the circles to tie the game 1-1 at 16:15.
It was a significant goal for Berard because it was his first of the season, after the disappointment of being the final cut at Rangers training camp. The 23-year-old played 35 games with the Rangers last season, and totaled 10 points (six goals, four assists). Berard led Hartford with 25 goals as a rookie pro in 2023-24.
Top defenseman prospect Scott Morrow also assisted on that goal, his first point with Hartford after the Rangers acquired him from the Carolina Hurricanes in the K’Andre Miller trade on July 1.
That goal set off an offensive explosion for the Wolf Pack, who scored five straight goals in a span of 6:11, bridging the first and second periods. The last of the goals was scored by Perreault at 2:26 of the second.
Perreault got to the net front and deflected a Justin Dowling shot into the cage, despite being surrounded by three defenders. Impressively, each of Perreault’s goals thus far came on deflections, with the slight youngster more than willing to go to the dirty areas and not just remain on the perimeter.
The former Boston College star, who was scoreless in five games with the Rangers last spring, recorded three of Hartford’s 35 shots on goal Saturday, and earned Third Star honors.
Gabe Perreault not only Rangers prospect to stand out in Hartford win
Bryce McConnell-Barker Photo Courtesy Hartford Wolf Pack
Perreault is tied for the Wolf Pack lead with four points in six games, along with second-year pro Bryce McConnell-Barker. New York’s third-round pick in the 2002 draft, McConnell-Barker also has four points (two goals, two assists), after the forward notched a goal and an assist against Springfield. He picked u peach of those four points in the past four games.
McConnell-Barker was credited with a goal at 7:55 of the second period, when his centering pass off a 3-on-2 rush deflected off a Springfield defenseman and into the net. The 21-year-old tied for the team lead with four shots on goal and was named the game’s First Star.
Defenseman Jackson Dorrington continued his strong play with an assist on Perreault’s goal, four shots on goal, a plus-4 rating, and a fight with Springfield’s Dylan Peterson in the third period. The Rangers acquired the rugged 21-year-old, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 216 pounds, from the Vancouver Canucks in the J.T. Miller trade on Jan. 31.
Carey Terrance scored his second goal in three games, and Brendan Brisson potted his first of the season for Hartford. Defenseman Blake Hillman had a goal and an assist, and goalie Dylan Garand stopped 12 of 15 shots.
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