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| Perreault scored on this drive against the Habs in February. |
Stats/Season Summary: Perreault played almost all of his 35 games this year during the middle of the year, getting essentially nightly call to the lineup between December 6th and February 25th. In those 35 games, Matty P racked up 7 goals, 1 on the which was on the power play, and 7 assists to go along with a -3 rating and 20 penalty minutes. Perreault's problem was that his production game in spurts; he was very inconsistent, as 10 of his 14 points came in 5 games, and it eventually led to his demotion for the rest of the regular season in late February. And when he wasn't producing, he looks out of sorts, losing coverage in the defensive zone and letting himself get knocked around a bit. Grade: C
Role Play: Perreault's role this year was very hard to figure out. He went from beginning the year in Hershey to being recalled in December and then pulling pretty much full-time duty for almost three months, regardless of how he played, until his demotion. Sometimes he skated on the fourth line, others he was the second line center and saw time on the first power play unit. He was versatile, which there is always some value to, but he was, as I said before, very inconsistent, and he got lost in the wash by season's end. Like most of the Caps' young players, though, he always had a smile on his face and worked hard, just like a call-up should. Grade: C+
Playoffs: Perreault was recalled to the Caps as one of their "Black Aces" after the Bears lost in the playoffs, but never cracked the lineup. Grade: N/A
Future Potential: Perreault is a restricted free agent, so if the Caps bring him back, it will likely be on a two-way deal that could help the Caps avoid too big a hit on their salary cap. He is a skilled and speedy center, so he is a valuable player to keep around, and I think that George McPhee and Boudreau like his ceiling if he could only find some consistency. If he remains in the organization, he could have a shot at the third line center role (presuming DC doesn't keep Jason Arnott) during training camp, but otherwise he may end up in Hershey again. He could also end up getting traded for a draft pick. Again, with 85, it's all about consistency to take his game to the next level. Grade: B-
Here's some video of a goal he scored against the Hurricanes in late December. Sorry the audio is a bit out of sync, Joe B got a little ahead of himself.
The next report card will be posted on May 14th and will feature Marco Sturm.
I find that it's possible for 85 to be a MSTL of-sorts if he finds his consistancy. While he is a smaller player, he does have some skills and puts effort out there. Didn't help that he got completely leveled (against MTL, I believe) and he mostly disappeared after that
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