Perets To Continue 'Thinking Outside The Box' In Second Pro Season

BELLEVUE, Tenn. - 12 minutes and 46 seconds.

Certainly not an eternity, but enough to make an impression, right?

For Yaniv Perets, that's how long he got to experience game action between the pipes of an NHL net.

Mere months after signing with the Carolina Hurricanes as an undrafted free agent, the Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec-born goaltender was called upon for his welcome-to-the-league moment, entering in relief against the Los Angeles Kings on January 15.

It was a forgettable performance overall for the home team in Raleigh, but for Perets, it was a taste of something he's working toward getting more of.

"Obviously, it was a dream come true," Perets reflected this week. "I don't think I was really expecting to get in there. The game was pretty close but then in the third period, they scored a couple. You hear your name get called and you're pretty excited."

Perets made one stop in his debut, denying a chance from inside the circle by now-Washington Capital Pierre-Luc Dubois on the only effort required of the rookie that night.

Although the workload was light, he did have to make a save, and he credits the locker room with making him feel comfortable going into the situation.

"Everyone [in the Canes locker room] was so nice. It can be stressful sometimes when you're the new guy walking into the room. You don't want to say too much so you'll keep to yourself, but everyone in Carolina was so, so nice and that helped a lot," he continued rehashing. "Everyone was super welcoming, so that was cool. It made the moment even more enjoyable and it's something that I'll forever look back on."

It was a tremendous story at the time, but there was also an understanding that what took place on that day wasn't supposed to happen that soon. Perets had played just 11 games as a professional, all at the ECHL level, and the Canes had always hoped to gradually work him up the ladder of development before thrusting him into a contest at the highest level.

In the following days, the Canes obtained more insurance in net via a waiver claim of Spencer Martin, and as a result, Perets was returned to Norfolk.

Now that the feel-good moment has turned into a memory, Perets, one of two goalies on this weekend's Prospects Showcase roster, is aiming to continue his growth in his second pro season.

Someone who may benefit from Carolina's new affiliation agreement with the Chicago Wolves at the American Hockey League (AHL) level, there's now a natural step in between last year's atypical minor league situation.

"I'm just taking it one day at a time. Playing in the AHL would be amazing, it's obviously an amazing league. So many amazing goalies, and players, develop in the AHL before moving up to the next level. It's a big stepping stone," Perets offered.

"For me, I'm just going to stick to my process and try and get better every single day. Show up every day, do your job, take care of yourself and hopefully that puts you in the best position to succeed no matter where you play."

Meticulous with his words, Perets has a fascinating personality. He'll say all the right things and do so in a courteous manner, but asking him what he's improved on positionally over the last year and how he'd like to continue growing this season is like asking him for his deepest, darkest secret.

In true goalie fashion, he shared with a smile that 'he likes to keep his lessons learned to himself.' Fair enough.

Goaltending Development Coach Jason Muzzatti chuckled when he learned that his pupil had said that, before pulling back the curtain a little bit more.

"He really thinks outside the box. He tries to do whatever he can to improve and be a better goaltender," Muzzatti, now in his sixth season with the organization, said. "He'll be thinking of ways to improve his posture and things like that. Not a lot of goalies think about that sort of thing, but he'll think of anything that will help him achieve what he needs to do in the net."

While there are almost always fundamental things that can be honed in on, part of what allows Perets to be successful at working on things "outside of the box" is the fact that he showed up to the organization with a solid foundation for the position.

"He'd already had a professional approach," Muzzatti praised. "He won a national championship, so we figured that he already had some good traits, but he has such a mature approach to the game and that was a really impressive part."

A credit to the goaltending coaches he'd worked with previously, there's also some flare to his game and some comparisons to what Canes fans have grown to love from Pyotr Kochetkov.

"[Yaniv] reads the play really well, he likes to throw the poke check in a lot too," Muzzatti finished. "Some of the stuff he does is outside of the norm of the role, but he's a great kid, always positive, and he's been really fun to work with."

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