Why Rangers’ Brett Berard ‘lost a little confidence,’ but ready for 2nd chance
There’s no doubt that Brett Berard’s been on a rollercoaster ride the past few months. But after considerable ups and down, the 23-year-old forward is back in the NHL, ready for his season debut Monday for the New York Rangers against the St. Louis Blues.
Berard explained that being among the final cuts at training camp “stinks” and was a setback for him. Especially after he entered Rangers camp among the contenders to earn a bottom-six role.
“Getting sent down from camp that late kind of stinks,” Berard said after the morning skate Monday. “I kind of lost a little confidence there and the first games (with Hartford of the American Hockey League) was kind of hard to get my game back.”
Berard was pointless in his first five games with Hartford, and went the first 14 games without scoring a goal. Remember, this is the same player who led Hartford with 25 goals as a rookie pro two seasons ago and had six goals and 10 points in 35 games with the Rangers in 2024-25.
“I think it was also good to challenge the mental toughness to go through a funk like that at the start of the year,” he shared. “Especially the last few weeks, I’ve felt really confident in my games and myself. I’m happy with where I’m at.”
Berard scored two goals in his past three games, is tied for the Hartford lead with seven assists, and is fourth on the team with nine points in 17 games. From where he started the season, that’s a nice rebound.
With captain J.T. Miller day to day with an upper-body injury and Vincent Trocheck also battling an undisclosed injury, the Rangers recalled Berard from Hartford on Sunday. Miller’s out for the second straight game, and Trocheck is a game-time decision. But it appears Berard draws into the lineup against the Blues no matter what, and will play on the third line with Noah Laba and Conor Sheary.
“Being up here in the NHL is every kid’s dream, and it feels like the first day I got called up last year, too. Same emotion, same excitement, same happiness.”
Rangers coach Mike Sullivan believes Brett Berard will ‘give us a spark’
Ironically, Berard made his NHL debut against the Blues at MSG almost a year to the day, on Nov. 25, 2024. He picked up an assist on a Will Cuylle goal, and then went out and scored his first NHL goal two nights later on Thanksgiving Eve in Raleigh against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Again, with a bit of irony, the Rangers visit the Hurricanes next on Wednesday.
This time, though, the 5-foot-9 wing will play for a different coach. A year ago, it was Peter Laviolette. Now, it’s Mike Sullivan, who sees they key attributes Berard brings to the Rangers lineup.
“He can really skate. He brings a ton of energy. He brings a little physicality to our team, so I’m sure he’ll give us a spark,” Sullivan said Monday.
However, if Berard has any chance of sticking with the Rangers once some of the veterans get healthy, he must prove capable defensively, something that other forward prospects, like Gabe Perreault and Brennan Othmann, are also trying to get better at.
“The role that he’ll play is an energy guy that can be disruptive, get in on the forecheck, help with our team speed. But along with that, it becomes just the importance of playing a team game and attention to detail away from the puck, in particular,” Sullivan explained. “Those types of guys, when you put them on the ice, you want to trust that they’re reliable and dependable, and they know what their job is and they execute their job. A lot of that boils down to details. That’s the message to those types of players.”
Berard is well aware of the mandate from his coach. And he’s out to bring the energy Monday against the Blues, kind of a second chance that he desperately wants to make the most of.
