The Rangers’ roster is just about set heading into this season.
They do have one or two openings, though, and thus far in preseason action some of their young talent have been making a strong bid for those spots.
Here’s a look at how they’ve preformed…
Gabe Perreault
Perreault received a cup of coffee at the pro level after signing his entry-level contract towards the end of last season, and he’s been out to return there to begin this year.
The youngster found the back of the net in each of the first two preseason games.
He was held off the board during Thursday’s 5-4 loss to the Islanders, but still enjoyed another impressive showing as he logged 19 minutes of ice time skating while with J.T. Miller and Mika Zibanejad on the top line.
New head coach Mike Sullivan said earlier this week that Perreault looks the part of a future NHLer, but it remains to be seen whether or not he’ll start the year with the club or down in Hartford.
“That’s always going to be the question with young players,” he said. “What’s the best formula for that player to ultimately become the impact player we perceive? Is it playing a lot of minutes in the AHL of playing in the NHL? It’s kind of a case-by-case basis, but what I will tell you is that he is an NHL player in the making.”
Brennan Othmann
This seems to be a make-or-break camp for Othmann, who logged just a pair of helpers during his 22 game NHL debut last season.
He was quiet during the preseason opener but finally made his mark midway through the second contest, getting to the front of the net to screen Boston’s netminder on Vincent Trocheck’s first period goal.
The 22-year-old then added a tally of his own, beating Islanders goalie David Rittich on the power play with three minutes left in the first period of Thursday’s loss.
Othmann finished with just that one point and three shots on goal.
“Otter has shown glimpses of brilliance,” Sullivan said. “He can really shoot the puck, as you saw tonight. We’d like to see him get into battles more, playing in traffic, going towards the traffic as opposed to moving away from it — we think he’s capable of playing that game.”
Brett Berard
Berard said coming into camp that he wanted to make a strong first impression on the new coaching staff, and thus far he’s certainly done so.
The youngster brought his high-energy two-way play into his first two preseason games.
He added an assist and five hits during his first action against the Bruins, then found the back of the net and recorded three more hits in Thursday’s meeting with the Islanders.
Berard just continues looking the part of an NHL-player.
The biggest obstacle for him is that this roster is very crowded at left wing, but he’s certainly doing what he can to make his presence felt.
Noah Laba
“I like to think I rise to the occasion,” Laba said on Thursday night.
Thus far in preseason play, the 22-year-old certainly has.
Laba came into camp seemingly considered a long shot for a roster spot, but he’s quickly thrown himself square into the mix for the third-line center opening.
He’s arguably looked most comfortable out of all the Rangers youngsters named above, taking his play to another level on both ends of the ice.
He currently leads the team with four assists, the latest of which was a beautiful between-the-legs feed on Berard’s goal Thursday night.
“He’s taken a giant step with his pace of play,” Sullivan said. “How quickly he thinks and he’s getting involved physically a little bit more — he has the ability to do that because he’s big and strong. That’s an important element of being hard to play against and the role that, if he were to play on this team, would be a welcome addition.”
Laba had three goals and two assists during his end of season tryout with Hartford.
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