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Former Rangers 1st-round pick uses ‘gritty rat style’ to earn spot with Flames
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- Former Rangers 1st-round pick uses ‘gritty rat style’ to earn spot with Flames
Given a fresh opportunity after being traded by the New York Rangers last March, Brennan Othmann opens a season on an NHL roster for the first time since turning pro in the fall of 2023. The first-round pick by the Rangers in the 2021 NHL Draft earned a spot on the Calgary Flames ' opening-night roster to begin the 2026-27 season.
Othmann called this career first "awesome" and "cool" and made clear that it beats the alternative of being sent back to the American Hockey League for a fourth consecutive season.
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"My first couple years [with the Rangers ], I was close, last couple cuts, and you're right there, and when you get sent down it stings," Othmann told reporters Tuesday. "So, being told that I made the team and to still be here with opening day in a couple of days, it's special. … But just like when you get drafted, the work is not done, you've got to keep going, keep working hard."
The 23-year-old forward played a more physical brand of hockey and displayed more confidence than during his time with the Rangers. Perhaps the pressure of being a former first-round pick doesn't weigh on him as much with a new team, one that didn't select him originally.
The NHL's Department of Player Safety fined Seattle Kraken defenseman Ville Ottavainen $2,190.72 for serving as the aggressor in Thursday night's altercation with Calgary Flames forward Brennan Othmann. More on the call and the aggressor rule (46.2): pic.twitter.com/2AuJ3XqzVI
— Scouting The Refs (@ScoutingTheRefs) September 25, 2026
But there's no doubt Othmann impressed in training camp , playing an inspired physical style that led to more production offensively, not to mention two fights and one ejection in the preseason.
"He did what he had to do. He came in and made sure people noticed him," Flames coach Ryan Huska said after their roster was set . "And the one thing we really like about what he did is he brought people into the fight with him. And I think that's really important for the makeup of our team."
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There's a good chance Othmann is a healthy scratch on opening night Thursday at home against the Seattle Kraken. But the Flames do play three games in four nights to begin the season, so there appears a path for him to play this weekend at some point. Like the Rangers, the Flames were 34-39-9 last season, tied for third-fewest points (77) in the League.
Brennan Othmann acknowledges 'up and down road' with Rangers before landing opening-night spot with Flames
So, there's an opportunity here for Othmann, whom the Flames acquired from the Rangers in exchange for forward prospect Jacob Battaglia. A 50-goal scorer in junior during the 2021-22 season, Othmann scored one goal and had three points in 42 games with the Rangers spread out over three seasons. He netted his first NHL goal last season in a Jan. 17 game against the Philadelphia Flyers .
🚨 FIRST NHL GOAL ALERT 🚨
Congratulations, Brennan Othmann! pic.twitter.com/ZU1d2cm6c2— NHL (@NHL) January 17, 2026
In his first training camp as Rangers coach, Mike Sullivan included Othmann among the first cuts. Though Othmann was recalled during the season, he played just 17 games before the Rangers traded him, following his request to be moved.
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"Don't forget, he's a younger guy still. Things didn't go the way he wanted it to in New York but he's got a new lease on life, and sometimes with players, they may not work out in their first stop but the next one it does because they figure a few things out along the way, as well," Huska explained.
"One thing I think he's figured out — yes, he is a skilled player that can make plays, but there's another part of his game that allows him to be really effective, and that's the gritty rat style he brought to the table in these couple of [preseason] games and the way he practiced."
Othmann always had that element to his game in junior and with Hartford of the American Hockey League. But he simply failed to deliver on any of it — physicality or production — when called up by the Rangers.
After the trade in March, Othmann played primarily in the minors at AHL Calgary, but did pick up a goal and an assist in two games with the Flames before the season ended.
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To his credit, he worked hard this offseason and came into Flames camp "a lot more confident" and embraced what helped make him successful before. It translated into an excellent camp and preseason, and a spot on Calgary's roster to begin the season.
"It's been an up and down road, up and down through mountains and stuff to get here, it's been a journey," Othmann shared. "So, it's just a lot of fun that I'm here right now."
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