Brennan Othmann is going to get one last opportunity to show what he is capable of this preseason when the New York Rangers visit the New York Islanders on Friday in their final exhibition game.
With Artemi Panarin out day to day with a lower-body injury, Othmann will take the star forward’s place, in a top-six role alongside Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere.
“Tomorrow is an opportunity for him,” Peter Laviolette said Thursday. “That line will be together, and it’s an opportunity for him to go out and continue to make a mark in training camp.”
The No. 16 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft earned a chance to play with the big guns earlier in preseason against the Islanders, skating with Panarin and Filip Chytil in a 6-4 win, but it didn’t exactly pan out the way he had hoped.
“I played with two pretty good players and I’ve never really played with anyone of that caliber, so I was a little nervous the first few shifts,” Othmann explained after the game. “I hold myself to a pretty high standard, and I thought there were a few times where I was bobbling the puck a little bit. I was a little bit nervous and just wanted to dish the puck out to Panarin and Chytil.”
Brennan Othmann trying to prove himself to Rangers
With the competition for the final roster spots heating up, Othmann getting the nod to play with Trocheck and Lafreniere is an opportunity that he will have to make the most of if he wants to prove to Laviolette that he is NHL-ready.
Othmann, who will be the only Blueshirt to play all six preseason games, has one goal and three assists in his first five exhibition contests. The best way to describe his preseason: up and down. He’ll be looking for more of an up in the final game of the preseason.
“Like a lot of players, I don’t think everything has just been peaks the whole way,” Laviolette said. “I think there’s been some really good things. There’s things that we talk to and show and want him to get better at. A lot of players fall into that category but there’s also been some good things that he’s done.”
Overcoming the nerves of playing with top NHL talent is something that Othmann will have to do in order to play a more complete game this time around. Since the last contest against the Islanders, the 21-year-old has gotten noticeably better. An unassisted breakaway goal against the Boston Bruins got him going last week, when he stripped the puck from towering defenseman Nikita Zadorov and got in alone for the finish in the 5-2 win.
He also had two assists Tuesday in a 5-4 win against the New Jersey Devils. And his physical play, including a fight against the Bruins, has stood out.
Of course, Othmann can do everything right Friday and still not make the opening-night roster. If Panarin is healthy enough to play, he will, and the need for the extra forward will be negated.
For now, Othmann is the favorite to earn a roster spot over other options, such as Brett Berard. Having played in every preseason game, and now earning his second chance to play with extremely talented players, he’ll have to combat any nerves or confidence issues he may have had the first time he was in this situation if he wants to stick around with the big club.
“He’s a talented player that can make plays and put up points,” Laviolette continued. “I think the evaluation process still goes on with him.”
