Rangers assign towering goalie to Hartford, reduce roster to 47
Though the New York Rangers had their first day off at training camp Monday, they did make some minor news. The Rangers assigned goalie Hugo Ollas to Hartford of the American Hockey League, reducing their training-camp roster to 47 players.
The 22-year-old is starting his first full professional season in 2024-25. After finishing his collegiate career with Merrimack College last spring, Ollas signed his entry-level contract with the Rangers and then played one AHL game with Hartford on a PTO. He won his first professional start against Springfield on April 20.
The 6-foot-7 goalie was 7-12-0 with a 2.84 goals-against average and .908 save percentage in 21 games last season with Merrimack. Two years ago, he was voted to the Hockey East Third All-Star Team following his sophomore season, when he was 10-9-0 with a 2.32 GAA, .915 save percentage and five shutouts.
The Rangers selected the native of Sweden in the seventh round (No. 197 overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. Though assigned now to Hartford, it’s expected that Ollas will share the net in the ECHL this season with another 6-foot-7 goalie prospect, Talyn Boyko, who remains in Rangers camp. Veteran Louis Domingue and third-year pro Dylan Garand are expected to be the goalies in Hartford.
Domingue and Garand split duties Sunday when the Rangers opened the preseason with a 3-2 win against the Boston Bruins. Domingue started and allowed one goal on 15 shots in 30:18. Garand picked up the win, allowing one goal on 13 shots.
Those two and Boyko are among five goalies still in Rangers camp. Of course, the other two are Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick.
Related: 3 Rangers takeaways from 3-2 preseason win against Bruins
Several Hartford players stand out in Rangers’ preseason victory
Victor Mancini – courtesy Hartford Wolf Pack
The Rangers reduced their roster by 15 players Sunday, when they made their first cuts. Eleven of those players were assigned to Hartford, including Maxim Barbashev, Carter Berger, Brett Budgell, Jonny Evans, Blake Hillman, Blade Jenkins, Case McCarthy, Blake McLaughlin, Jake Murray, Chase Pauls, and Ryan Siedem.
The Wolf Pack open their training camp on Sunday, so there’s a good chance the Rangers will make more cuts later this week. Those may come after preseason games Tuesday against the Islanders and Thursday against the Bruins.
New York’s lineup Sunday against the Bruins featured 14 players likely ticketed to start the season in Hartford. Among the standouts were defensemen Victor Mancini, who had a goal and an assist; forward Alex Belzile, who scored the game-winning goal; forward Anton Blidh, who had an assist and a team-high four hits; center Jake Leschyshyn, who won seven of 10 face-offs; and 2021 first-round pick Brennan Othmann, who had two big hits and got into a second-period fight.
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