In a surprising move, the Rangers have recalled forward Bo Broulx from the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack and reassigned rookie Brett Berard to Hartford as a result.
The transaction was made likely in direct correlation to center Filip Chytil being listed as a game time decision in the Rangers' rapidly upcoming matchup in Las Vegas. Chytil exited with an upper-body injury against Dallas in the recent 5-4. His final shift of the night ended with around four minutes left in the second period, and he wasn’t on the bench for the remainder of the game once the third started.
UPDATE: Bo Groulx has been recalled from the Hartford Wolf Pack and Brett Berard has been assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack.
— NY Rangers PR (@NYR_PR) January 11, 2025
According to the Wolf Pack — Groulx — has recorded 29 points (11 goal, 18 assists) in 32 games with Hartford so far during the 2024-25 season. He currently leads the club in goals and sits second on the team in points.
Last season, Groulx appeared in 45 games with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks, scoring two assists. The Rouen native has scored 119 points (50 goals, 69 assists) in 177 career AHL games with the Wolf Pack and San Diego Gulls. He has appeared in 65 career NHL games with the Ducks, scoring five points (1 goal, 4 assists). Groulx recorded two goals in the Wolf Pack’s 5-1 victory over the Bridgeport Islanders on Jan. 5, his most recent game action.
Should Chytil’s injury prohibit him from playing against the Las Vegas Knights, Groulx will likely make his debut with the Rangers.
While the move up for Groulx makes sense given the Rangers will both need and want more options at center, where most Blueshirt fans will probably be surprised is with the choice to move Berard down.
Despite playing nearly half as many games as the rest of his teammates on the Rangers' roster, Berard has already climbed to 13th on the team in hits with 27. He also has scored three goals and seven points in 19 games averaging 11:20 of ice time in the team’s bottom six. Berard also became the first Blueshirt to start his NHL career with a two-point game streak, which hadn't happened since March of 2018.
Although, it is worth noting that Berard was assumed to be traveling with the team, so this may be a paper transaction.