Gabe Perreault scored at over a point per game in Hartford to start the season. Bruce Bennett / Getty Images
In need of an offensive spark, the Rangers recalled top prospect Gabe Perreault from AHL Hartford on Sunday. Jaroslav Chmelař was sent back to Hartford.
The 20-year-old winger made his NHL debut in the spring after his Boston College season ended. He had zero points in five games, then did not make the NHL club out of training camp. After five goals and 10 points in nine games with the Wolf Pack, he’s getting an NHL chance.
The Rangers (7-7-2) are off to a historically poor start at home this season. They have a 0-6-1 record at Madison Square Garden and have been shut out in five of their seven home games. Perreault is a player known for his offensive abilities, so this move was clearly made hoping to ignite New York’s offense. The Rangers next play Monday against Nashville.
Perreault ranked No. 1 in The Athletic’s Rangers prospect rankings this fall. Former Boston College teammate Will Smith said last season that Perreault has the “best vision I’ve ever played with.” That helped make him the Rangers’ first-round pick in 2023 (No. 23 overall), and he had 108 points in 73 games at Boston College. At 5-foot-11, 180 pounds, he doesn’t bring much to a lineup in terms of size, but that hasn’t stopped him from producing at every level so far.
Perreault missed the two most recent Wolf Pack games with an upper-body injury. He was classified as day-to-day. He was also the AHL Player of the Week the week prior.
New York coach Mike Sullivan called Perreault “an NHL player in the making” during preseason and said that the rookie getting minutes will be important for his development. That likely means a place in the Rangers’ top six makes most sense now that he’s back in the NHL. The Rangers started their last game with Taylor Raddysh on the top line, and this move gives them flexibility to move him back to a bottom-six role.
New York will also likely need to make room in the lineup for Vincent Trocheck soon. He’s recovering from an upper-body injury but has been skating.
Chmelař returns to Hartford after playing his first two NHL games. He had a fight in his debut in Detroit and averaged 7:14 of ice time in his first NHL stint.
Nov 10, 2025
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