And the veteran centre believes he can help end the Knights' 25-year wait for another NRL premiership.
Newcastle cemented their position inside the competition's top eight and inched closer to a top-four berth with a gritty 30-24 victory over Canberra on Sunday.
It was a courageous performance by the visitors, considering they lost star centre Bradman Best and hooker Phoenix Crossland to calf injuries, adding to a ballooning casualty ward that includes halfback Dylan Brown and second-rower Dylan Lucas.
Newcastle (13-8) are in sixth spot and well-placed to snare a finals berth, a remarkable turnaround after collecting the wooden spoon last year.
At the centre of the transformation has been coach Justin Holbrook, who has emphatically answered the Knights' SOS calls.
"I've been a part of clubs that have been in bad situations and won wooden spoons, but then I've been a part of obviously South Sydney," Gagai told AAP.
"It's got that same sort of feel. Everyone's just connected, the players and staff, and that's what it takes to make it to the end.
"The buy-in from all the boys, and the people that Justin's brought with him ... Justin just gives us the confidence and belief to play our footy."
Gagai reached the finals in all four of his seasons with the Rabbitohs, culminating in a grand final loss to Penrith in 2021, before transferring to the Hunter in 2022.
At the end of this year, the 35-year-old is on the move to Brisbane to reunite with the club that gave him his first taste of the NRL.
But he's refusing to get ahead of himself.
"It was 2013 when we (Newcastle) went to a prelim, and (hooker) Danny Buderus went down in the first five, 10 minutes. That was the closest I got (to a grand final with the Knights)," Gagai said.
"There is a motivation to want to win here in my last year, but that's not what motivates me.
"What motivates me is what these boys are doing, what the young boys are doing, and just knowing that I've just got to do my job because everyone else is doing theirs."
Gagai is focused on Newcastle's clash against Gold Coast on Sunday, with the club expected to welcome back Best and Crossland.
But even if the pair don't recover in time, the centre is confident his team can secure a third consecutive victory.
"Obviously we lost someone like Dylan Lucas, who's been phenomenal for us and played Origin representative footy," Gagai said.
"But then someone like Francis (Manuleleua) comes into the side, and he's just been absolutely phenomenal.
"So we've got (depth) in our squad, not just in the starting side."
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