Brennan Othmann had plenty to say about the New York Rangers ahead of the Calgary Flames' 3-1 loss on Wednesday evening, and unfortunately for him and Calgary, his pregame quotes were the only noise he made all night. Selected by the Blueshirts 16th overall during the 2021 NHL Draft, Othmann appeared in just 42 NHL games in New York. Drafted to become a physical force in the top six, Othmann failed to seize his opportunities and suffered poorly timed injuries when roster spots opened up.
Othmann Calls Out Blueshirts Before Puck Drop
Speaking with the media after Wednesday's morning skate, Othmann made it clear he felt he never received a fair shake on Broadway.
Via Mollie Walker of the New York Post:
"I thought that some got more of a leash than I did, and I was still a very good player. I still produced in Hartford very well. I felt like when I came up [to New York], I just never got a fair leash. I felt like others did, and I just wanted that opportunity somewhere else. Calgary has been giving me that since I’ve got here."
Othmann added that while he enjoyed brief stints alongside Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck, and later Will Cuylle and Noah Laba, he never got the sustained runway he wanted.
"Everyone always wants more, but I just felt like — I hate bringing this up all the time — but being a first-round pick and the opportunity I had in Hartford and then coming up, it was just — I don’t know, the time that I had last year was pretty egregious, I thought. I just thought that it was time to change."
If Othmann wanted to stick it to his former club and prove President and General Manager Chris Drury made a mistake trading him for Jacob Battaglia, he had an odd way of showing it on Wednesday. Skating 9:10 in his return from an upper-body injury, Othmann finished with zero points, zero shots on goal, and a single hit. Across 42 career games with the Rangers, he managed just one goal, coming in his 35th game, and two assists for three points. Since arriving in Calgary, he has posted one goal and one assist in nine games, which technically qualifies as improvement.
A Pattern of Declining Production
Othmann's statistical trajectory since his junior days reveals a steady drop-off in scoring efficiency across every level:
Season | Team | GP | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2021-22 | Flint (OHL) | 66 | 50 | 47 | 97 |
2022-23 | Flint/Peterborough (OHL) | 56 | 29 | 38 | 67 |
2023-24 | Hartford (AHL) | 67 | 21 | 28 | 49 |
2024-25 | Hartford (AHL) | 27 | 12 | 8 | 20 |
2025-26 | Hartford/Calgary (AHL) | 40 | 9 | 14 | 23 |
After graduating from the OHL, Othmann made a strong initial impression in Hartford with 49 points in 67 games, earning a three-game cup of coffee with New York. The following season, an October injury sidelined him for 10 weeks, limiting him to 27 AHL games (20 points) while he failed to score a goal while settling for two assists across 22 NHL appearances. Last season, his production dipped further, tallying 16 points in 26 games with Hartford and just seven points in 14 games with the AHL's Calgary Wranglers following the deadline trade.
Even in junior hockey, the signs were visible. After erupting for 50 goals and 97 points in 66 games as Flint's captain in 2021-22, his pace cooled following a midseason trade to the Peterborough Petes, where he notched 43 points in 40 contests.
There will always be players who feel their former organization mishandled them. While the Rangers have been guilty of rushing prospects or misusing young talent in the past, Othmann simply never produced enough to demand a bigger role. Leaving New York and turning in a zero-shot ghost act against his old team only weakens his argument.
14 shifts last night against your former team. Donuts across the stat sheet.
— Stephen Valiquette (@VallysView) November 12, 2026
Make them play you!!
The message to every young player, at every level: Dominate where you are. Move up. Make them keep you. Then make them play you!! #NYR
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