Brett Berard looks like he might get a chance to show what he can do with the New York Rangers in the NHL.
The fifth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, skated in Artemi Panarin’s usual spot at left wing on a line with Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere at practice Sunday. Panarin, who’s nursing a lower-body injury sustained early in a 5-4 win against the New Jersey Devils on Oct. 1, skated on his own before practice.
There are no guarantees that Berard will have the same linemates – or even dress for the game – when the Rangers open their season Wednesday against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. But the 22-year-old forward, who led Hartford of the American Hockey League with 25 goals last season, his first as a pro, has made an impression on coach Peter Laviolette.
“He’s been a noticeable guy,” Laviolette said after practice. “He had a great year last year, I think he led the team in goals – 20, 25 goals, pretty good for a first-year. He was very noticeable in the rookie games with his competitiveness and his speed. In the opportunities he’s gotten here he’s been noticeable as well.”
The Rangers have a couple more moves to make before opening night, and Berard could still be assigned to Hartford, especially if Panarin is able to play Wednesday. But Laviolette made it clear he’s happy with what he’s seen.
“There’s an opportunity for him to come in and show what he can do,” he said, “Even if it’s just practices, just to continue to show what he can do because like what we’ve seen.”
Rangers want Brennan Othmann to improve his consistency
Another rookie forward, Brennan Othmann, played all six preseason games and didn’t hurt his future NHL chances. But the Rangers want their first-round pick in 2021 to get more playing time, so they sent him to Hartford on Saturday.
That’s not to say they’re disappointed in what they saw.
“I thought he had a good camp,” Laviolette said. “There were games I thought he was noticeable. He had a good first year last year.”
But one thing he said Othmann has to improve is his consistency. To do that, the Rangers want him to play big minutes in the AHL rather than be used in a fourth-line role in the NHL
“With regard to that step to be a regular, for me (it’s) just finding that consistency,” he said. “I think when you’re a young player, sometimes that consistency inside your game is what needs to be worked on. He came in in great shape; that was good. He had some good moments; that was good, too. The fact that he can play both sides; that’s a positive.
“But at the end of the day, just from a development standpoint, I think going down there and taking on the minutes and playing more in every situation is going to help develop him to get back to this level. I think just finding that consistency inside his game as well.”
Othmann had four points (one goal, three assists) in the preseason after scoring 21 goals with Hartford last season as a rookie pro.
Miller-Fox tandem could be a go on top defense pair
The upper-body injury that sidelined Ryan Lindgren, Adam Fox’s usual partner on the first defense pairing, could result in Laviolette putting his two best offensive defensemen together.
K’Andre Miller played in Lindgren’s usual spot on the left side for the first half of the Rangers’ 5-2 loss to the New York Islanders in the preseason finale Friday. The combination produced offense – Fox scored one goal and assisted on the other, and Miller assisted on both Rangers goals.
Laviolette changed his pairings midway through the game, a decision he said was planned ahead of time. But the two were paired during practice Sunday, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they’re partnered on Wednesday.
“I think he is one of our top defensemen,” Laviolette said of Miller. “He plays the toughest minutes and he plays against the top players. He can skate, he can move the puck, he can defend. He does so many things well.”
“He brings so much to the table for us already. We want to see a continued growth in regard to that. We’re happy with him, and continued growth would be great.”
Miller was second on the team — behind Fox (23:27) — in average ice-time per game (21:34) last season. He paired mostly with captain Jacob Trouba and some with Braden Schneider. But has rarely skated with Fox over the years.
Peter Laviolette eager to get regular season started
The Rangers ended the preseason 4-2-0 after the loss to the Islanders, a game in which they were dominated for much of the night. But Laviolette said Sunday his team is ready to play for real.
“I think so,” he said when asked if the Rangers are ready for the new season. “We’ve checked a lot of boxes. We’ve gone over a lot of things.”
The team will use the remaining time before the start of the regular season to iron out a few things.
“We still have another day of practice. We’ll still do some walkthroughs in the video room. We’re still working at it, but we’ve checked a lot of boxes on things that we wanted to do and wanted to accomplish. We’ve been working since the start of training camp to try and make sure we’re ready, make sure that we’re prepared for Game 1. You always want a little more time, but I think we’re in a pretty good spot with the time we have left.”
