In the second period of the New York Rangers’ 7-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday night, Mike Sullivan moved Will Cuylle up to play with Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller, while moving Gabe Perreault down on the third line with Noah Laba and Conor Sheary.
Some may think this was due to Perreault’s play, but that actually wasn’t the case.
With the Lightning having the advantage of last change on their home ice, Jon Cooper decided to throw the Nikita Kucherov-Jake Guentzel-Brayden Point against Zibanejad and Miller.
Sullivan did not want to put Perreault in a difficult situation against premier offensive talent, since only he has a few games of NHL experience under his belt.
“[Lightning coach Jon Cooper] wanted that match with Kucherov, Guentzel and Brayden Point,” Sullivan said. “We just felt like that's a tall task for a young kid [Gabe Perreault] that hasn't played a whole lot in the league. If that was going to be the match, we thought it made more sense to have a guy like Will play with JT and Mika in that circumstance. Some of it was just based on the feel of the game, but some of it was just from a matchup strategy standpoint.”
When the Rangers called up Perreault, Sullivan emphasized how important it was to give Perreault a prominent role, which could allow him to thrive and showcase his skills at the highest level.
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“Our intention is to try to set him up for success so he can play with strengths,” Sullivan said of Perreault. “I don't know that it makes a whole lot of sense to call up a player like that and put him in a bottom-six role. I think he's a guy that potentially could help us if we can get the best version of him, so it's a great opportunity for him.”
Sullivan has also been cautious with Perreault by not throwing him into uncomfortable situations, while managing his minutes.
The 20-year-old forward is averaging 13:26 minutes over his two games with the Rangers this season.
Whichever line Perreault plays on will likely be matchup dependent moving forward or will fluctuate based on game script.