Brennan Othmann is hoping some offseason changes will make the fifth time the charm when it comes to making the New York Rangers .
The 22-year-old, taken by the Rangers in the first round (No. 16 overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft began his fifth rookie camp on Wednesday when 22 hopefuls took the ice at the MSG Training Center in Tarrytown, New York. He arrived after switching up his summertime schedule, opting to move his workouts to Gary Roberts Performance in Vaughn, Ontario.
Among those working out at the former NHL forward's facility were Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl , as well as Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog .
"They helped me gain some of my confidence back that I didn't really have here toward the end of the year," he said, "so they did a great job."
Othmann arrived at camp weighing 195 pounds, meaning he's added about 10 pounds of muscle. He brought a more mature attitude as well.
"It's just that when I got called up last year, I think I was a little bit nervous and starstruck at the time," he said after skating at left wing on a line with center Noah Laba and right wing Gabriel Perreault. "I felt like being around NHL guys for the whole summer – and, I mean, I was around NHL guys basically since February. Coming to camp now, I'm not really nervous or anything like that."
After another day of practice, Othmann and the rest of his rookie teammates will get their first chance to make an impression on new coach Mike Sullivan and his staff when they play the Philadelphia Flyers ' rookies on Friday and Saturday in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Othmann isn't the only player at rookie camp to add some muscle. Perreault arrived 10 pounds bigger after his summer workout routine, although he still clocks in at just 180. "I know that it's not going to be given to me," he said of making the team out of training camp. "Every day I'll work hard and try to prove it."
Laba, who's all but certain to begin the season with AHL Hartford, said "there's a lot of lessons to be learned here, a lot of teaching points. … It's my first one, so I am kind of taking it all in." Playing between Othmann and Perreault "was awesome." One thing that could boost Laba's chances of making it to the Garden sooner rather than later is the Rangers' lack of young talent in the middle.
Finally, as the Rangers remind us each year on Sept. 11, never forget those who lost their lives on this day in 2001.
Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
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