3 Rangers takeaways after Brennan Othmann, Scott Morrow lead rookies to 5-2 win against Flyers
This time the New York Rangers rookies closed the deal.
The Blueshirts kids did the same thing on Saturday that they’d done 22 hours earlier by scoring the game’s first two goals at the PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania. But instead of blowing the lead and losing in overtime, the Rangers kept their collective foot on the gas this time, never let the Philadelphia Flyers rookies get even and controlled play for most of the game in what turned out to be a 5-2 win.
Three players who have legit hopes of opening the regular season on the roster put their best foot forward.
Forward Brennan Othmann had three assists, one on a sensational move that set up Noah Laba’s goal, after he scored a goal Friday. Defenseman Scott Morrow had the game-opening power-play goal and added two assists, to go along with his two helpers the night before. And 20-year-old forward Gabriel Perreault, arguably the Rangers’ best prospect, was much more visible, assisting on a goal before hitting the empty net to wrap up the win.
Callem Tung, who signed with the Rangers late last season after leading UConn to the NCAA Tournament for the first time, made 21 saves and looked sharp. He wasn’t tested as much as Hugo Ollas was in the 4-3 OT loss on Friday but looked sharp when he had to be and demonstrated why the Rangers were eager to bring him on board — even if his ceiling this season is likely to be as Dylan Garand’s backup with Hartford of the American Hockey League.
There’s no scheduled practice for the next two days, and a number of the kids who dressed for these two games are likely to be somewhere else once the veterans begin reporting next week. The coaching staff will spend a lot of time deciding who gets an invite to the main camp and who goes back to juniors or the minors.
Related: 3 Rangers takeaways after rookies waste two-goal lead, fall to Flyers 4-3 in OT
Three Rangers takeaways after 5-2 win against Philadelphia Flyers rookies
Here are three takeaways after the Rangers rookies had their way against their Flyers counterparts.
1. Brennan Othmann was the best player on the ice
This is likely a make-or-break year for Othmann, the Rangers’ first-round pick (No. 16) in the 2021 NHL Draft who’s attending his fifth rookie camp. Suffice it to say that he made the kind of impression he was aiming for.
The 22-year-old forward scored the game’s first goal on Friday and set up three more on Saturday, including a spectacular fake at the blue line that left a Flyers defenseman waving at air while freeing Laba for a goal.
He also stepped up when a couple of Flyers tried to push Perreault around.
He looked like a player who’s ready for a full-time NHL role after putting up just two assists in 22 games last season. Othmann sounded like one earlier in the week at camp.
“It’s just that when I got called up last year, I think I was a little bit nervous and starstruck at the time,” he said. “I felt like being around NHL guys for the whole summer – and, I mean, I was around NHL guys basically since February. Coming to camp now, I’m not really nervous or anything like that.”
2. Scott Morrow looks ready for the NHL
Morrow said it was “incredibly special” to wear an “A” in the two games with the Rangers rookies, after he was acquired in the K’Andre Miller trade on July 1. He looked like a special player in both games.
“It just shows that my hard work is getting noticed,” the 22-year-old said of wearing a letter. “I obviously have some pro experience, and I try to be a leader for these guys — show them the ropes and how you’re supposed to play and conduct yourself.”
Morrow made the power play go, converting a pass from Dylan Roobroeck for the opening goal and starting the play that led to a 5-on-3 goal by Jaroslav Chmelar in the second period that made it 3-1.
Stats were rudimentary, but the eye test said Morrow got the volume of ice time that stars like Adam Fox get during the regular season. There are jobs to be won on the blue line at camp, and Morrow looked like he helped his case for earning one.
Related: ‘No more Flyers shirts around the house’: Scott Morrow eager to show Rangers what he can do
3. Noah Laba impresses in the middle
The Rangers don’t have a lot of young talent in the middle, so they have to be pleased with the way Laba played in the two games in Allentown.
The 22-year-old, who looked good in his short stint with Hartford last spring after signing with the Blueshirts following three seasons at Colorado College, centered for Othmann and Perreault in both games and was very noticeable. He set up Othmann’s goal on Friday and scored the back-breaker late in the second period on Saturday.
Laba is ticketed for Hartford. But on a team that features a crew of centers who are over 30 and a possible hole at 3C, he could find himself on Broadway sooner rather than later if he continues to play like this.
