Gilbert Perreault is a Canadian former professional ice hockey center who played for 17 seasons with the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres. He was the first draft pick of the Sabres in their inaugural season in the NHL. He is well known as the centre man for the prolific trio of Sabres forwards known as The French Connection. The trio helped the Sabres reach the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals.
He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990. Known for his ability to stickhandle in close quarters, he is regarded as one of the most skillful playmaking centers of all time. In 2017 Perreault was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.
Perreault was a standout junior hockey player who went on to be selected to nine National Hockey League All-Star Games and two post-season NHL All-Star teams (second team centre), while winning the Calder Memorial Trophy and a Lady Byng Trophy, and being selected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.