Saturday was a crazy day for Brennan Othmann. He was a healthy scratch for the New York Rangers afternoon game against the Colorado Avalanche and was sent down to the Hartford Wolf Pack three hours before their game against the Bridgeport Islanders.
Moves like these are common occurrences in the American Hockey League (AHL). The winger beat the traffic, made it for warmups, and then scored one of the two goals for the Wolf Pack in a 6-2 loss. After the game, head coach Grant Potulny noted that the simple game, where Othmann doesn’t need to overthink things, is sometimes the best. “Sometimes when you’re just kinda thrust into something, you don’t have all day to think about it, and sometimes you can play a good game when that happens.”
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The truth is that Othmann plays his best when the game is simplified. It’s been the story all season and throughout his career. His goal came on the power play, where he found an open shot and buried it. Othmann needs a simple game but the Rangers aren’t providing it to him, and that’s where his development has stagnated, especially in the past two seasons.
Othmann is Struggling to Find New Identity
It’s no secret that the trade rumors and the press of this season are getting to Othmann. He’s reaching the point in his career where he’s no longer a developing prospect and must prove that he can be a regular at the NHL level. He hasn’t, and it’s why the Rangers might trade him.
Othmann tried to be a more physical presence with the Wolf Pack with the hopes that it would impress the Rangers. If he can forecheck and add a hard-hitting element to his game, he can find a spot on the third or fourth line. A change in his play was felt a week into the season as he tried to fight Boko Imama of the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins. The fight didn’t go anywhere, and good thing it didn’t, since Imama is not the type of player Othmann should be fighting to send a message (for those who don’t know who that is, the clip below should help).
He’s trying to carve out a role on the fourth line or become a checking forward. The problem is that he’s not that type of player, and ideally, he doesn’t need to be either. Othmann, as a scorer, can give the Rangers an extra layer of offense that they need.
What Hurt Othmann’s development?
It’s easy to make the Rangers and the Wolf Pack the scapegoats. They put him on the AHL-NHL roller coaster that sent him up and then down too many times to find a rhythm. Othmann never found a steady role because the Rangers never had one for him.
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Then there was the injury to start the 2024-25 season. Othmann battled an upper-body injury and only looked like himself when the second half of the season rolled around. It was a tough blow in a pivotal year for his development.
There are a lot of factors that go into slowing a prospect down. But ultimately, Othmann is who he is. The skill is there, and the offense is good enough to make it to the NHL someday. The question is whether he’s a fit with the Rangers, and the more this season plays out, the less it appears that way.
Rangers See Perreault as the Better Fit
With Mike Sullivan coaching the Rangers and Potulny mirroring his style for the Wolf Pack, the team has gotten more technical in its approach. There’s a lot more detail to their play, especially on the offensive end, from skaters breaking to the net to the cross-ice passes hitting teammates in stride.
It’s resulted in Othmann looking lost at times. His power play goal against the Islanders was only his second of the season. He’s played in 16 games yet has only had eight points, far from ideal for a forward who is supposed to be the Rangers top prospect.
The contrast is Gabe Perreault, who has 17 points in 17 games and leads the Wolf Pack with 10 goals. He’s the player who connects Potulny’s vision to the team’s execution, and it’s why the Wolf Pack often win when he’s playing well. He’s the player whom the Rangers can see on their third line next season, and possibly finding a spot on the second line. Othmann, meanwhile, is losing that spot to him and might need to find that role elsewhere.
Which Teams Can Unlock Othmann?
A handful of teams play a simple game or a free-flowing offense that suits Othmann. The Columbus Blue Jackets, San Jose Sharks, and Vancouver Canucks come to mind. Better yet, these three teams have the farm systems in place to give Othmann the ice time to find his footing.
The Rangers are selling low, or at least it appears that way, on Othmann. However, there will be a few teams willing to take a chance on him and move a player to make a win-win trade. The organization needs a puck-moving defenseman and can move Othmann for one in the AHL.
In the meantime, the Rangers should keep Othmann in the AHL. Specifically, they should have him playing on the Dylan Roobroeck line, where the two players might not play a detailed game but have the skill to generate offense. It will allow him to have a great season and give the Rangers more options when they need them.
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