Gabe Perreault and his dad, Yanic, a Chicago Blackhawks coach, make the World Juniors a family affair

Chicago Blackhawks development coach Yanic Perreault trained his son Gabe to be as good or better than him at a lot of skills, but would faceoffs be one of them?

“Maybe beat him (once), but not consistently,” Gabe said, laughing. “He’s definitely got me beat on that aspect, especially because he’s got a heavy wooden stick from back then.”

Yanic is the NHL’s all-time leader in faceoff win percentage at 62.9%. He explained that while he was center for 14 NHL seasons, Gabe is mainly a winger.

“He played a little bit in the middle when he was younger,” the elder Perreault said. “But it’s something we’ve been working on and we’re going to keep working on over the years, because even if you’re a wing you need to be good at taking faceoffs.”

The coach never stops coaching.

But Yanic will happily assume the role of spectator this week when Gabe represents the U.S. during the IIHF World Junior Championship, which starts Tuesday in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Last week, the 5-foot-11, 165-pound forward from Hinsdale was named to the final roster along with four Hawks prospects: Oliver Moore, Sam Rinzel, Gavin Hayes and Frank Nazar III.

“I was hoping that I could get the chance,” Gabe, 18, told the Tribune. “And then when they finally told me, I was just super thrilled. … It’s going to be a really good opportunity, and I’m excited to wear that jersey.”

Yanic was just excited to receive the early Christmas gift.

“He was really proud, which was awesome,” Gabe said.

Added Yanic: “It’s great for him. Being part of the program, Team USA, for a few years now, to be able to represent the USA, it’s something that was one of his goals. And last year they did well at the U18 World Juniors.”

Gabe posted five goals and 13 assists during the team’s run to the U18 gold medal.

“Now they’re looking forward to the next challenge,” Yanic said.

Yanic and wife July plan to travel to Sweden, perhaps in time to catch the Americans as they face the Swiss on Thursday.

When Yanic spoke with the Tribune, he was in California visiting his 21-year-old son, Jacob, who plays for the AHL San Diego Gulls. He planned to spend the Christmas holiday with his oldest, 25-year-old Jeremy, an assistant coach for a Chicago Mission youth squad.

Daughter Liliane, 23, “was at the Ottawa camp for the PWHL (Professional Women’s Hockey League), (but) she didn’t make the team this year, so she’ll be going to Europe,” Yanic said. “So it’s a hockey family.”

The Perreault siblings have come a long way from pickup hockey.

“The kids were playing lots of shinny hockey in the basement,” Yanic said. “Gabe had a shinny hockey stick from, like, 3 (or) 4 years old.

“Jacob was a little stronger, (so he) wouldn’t mind pushing him a little bit to get the ball. But I think it made Gabe a little bit tougher.”

Not much changed as adults.

“Jake has a little more jam,” Yanic said. “Both compete pretty hard, but Jacob gets a little more into the scrums once in a while.”

Yanic said with Gabe, it’s his “hockey IQ and his skills and being able to make quick plays and plays at high speed. … And when you see him on the ice you always see him smiling.”

Said Gabe: “He’s taught me so much, but if I could think of one thing specifically, it’s that he always told me to just have fun and don’t take it for granted. That’s something that’s always stuck with me growing up and still does.

“He was also really positive, always trying to find a way to get you better, and for me it was the type of coach I needed.”

Gabe said that growing up, Yanic was more patient than tough as a coach. Hearing that, Yanic said it was intentional.

“I always said if you try to make the kids excited to come to the rink, they’ll probably enjoy it more and work harder,” Yanic said.

That’s not to say he didn’t drill them.

“Be ready on time and get good habits and work hard and don’t make long shifts and try to make plays,” Yanic said. “Because when they’re younger, development is a big thing. You need to have them try to make plays and have the puck.”

That’s why his methods sometimes went against convention.

“I was not a big fan of dumping the puck in and go get it,” he said. “I was more about keeping the puck and making plays with the puck.”

It wasn’t easy managing four hockey-playing kids, especially in the early days when Perreault — who played his last NHL season with the Hawks in 2007-08 — was splitting time between Chicago and Rockford since rejoining the organization as a development coach in 2013-14.

“That was probably one of the toughest years when they’re all playing at four different rinks,” said Yanic, who credited July for making it all work.

But growing up in a Hawks haven such as Hinsdale was influential on Gabe.

“There’s quite a bit of hockey families there,” he said. “Certainly growing up there, playing (with) the Mission was really cool.”

Gabe had two big hockey influences.

“I tried to look a lot at Trevor Zegras,” he said. “He’s so skilled and knowing how smart he is, he’s someone that plays with a similar style.”

The other skilled skater he watched was Patrick Kane — and he got to meet him.

“We used to have the Blackhawks Christmas parties and stuff,” Gabe said. “So I’ve seen him a little bit. He also played with my dad, so my dad knows him pretty well.”

Added Yanic: “It was great to bring the kids to the games, and all those Christmas parties were always good because they had a chance to go on the ice with (players).”

When the Hawks won their third championship in six years in 2015, the kids got to pose with the Stanley Cup and attend the parade.

Jacob went on to be a first-round draft pick, No. 27, of the Anaheim Ducks in 2020.

The New York Rangers made Gabe their first-round pick at No. 23 in last summer’s draft.

“With Jacob, we weren’t at the draft because it was the COVID year, so it was a different experience,” Yanic said. “With Gabe, having a chance to be there at the draft and see his big smile when he got drafted, that was the biggest thing for us as a family.”

Yanic said Jacob made a “big step” in his progression this season and Gabe as well.

“They were training partners last summer in Chicago, so they work really, really hard together,” Yanic said. “They were doing some off-ice (training) downtown with GVN (Performance). And they were working with me and Brian Keene. … It’s been great for them, prepared them really well for their season.”

Despite their competitiveness, the Perreault siblings are supportive of each other. For Yanic, it’s a full-circle moment.

The Sherbrooke, Quebec, native grew up playing street hockey with three older brothers and two older sisters.

“They didn’t make it easy on me,” Yanic said.

But playing with his older brothers made him better, he said, and was part of the foundation his family built.

“My parents were always there to support me when I was playing,” Yanic said. “And that’s one thing I was trying to pass to my kids as well.”