The New York Rangers are recalling forward Brennan Othmann from AHL Hartford. Sarah Stier / Getty Images
NEW YORK — The New York Rangers are recalling forward Brennan Othmann from AHL Hartford, the team announced Friday. The move comes after Matt Rempe suffered an upper-body injury during a fight with San Jose Sharks veteran Ryan Reaves in Thursday’s 6-5 overtime loss at Madison Square Garden.
The Rangers are scheduled to fly to Calgary on Friday as they begin a four-game road trip through Western Canada and into Seattle, so it figures they would carry an extra forward as injury protection. But the fact that it’s Othmann comes as a slight surprise.
The 22-year-old was the first among three notable winger prospects who were cut during training camp last month, an indication he had fallen behind Brett Berard and Gabe Perreault in the pecking order. In the aftermath, the Rangers began listening to trade offers for the 2021 first-round pick, a league source said. No formal request was made by Othmann and New York is asking for significant value in return, the source said, but both sides had seemingly concluded that a fresh start was worth exploring.
On Thursday, The Athletic’s Chris Johnston placed Othmann at No. 10 on his early NHL trade candidates list.
In an interesting twist, the Rangers have decided to make Othmann their first forward recall of the season, even though Berard was the last player cut from camp and Perreault is widely considered the top prospect in the organization.
The 6-foot, 192-pound Othmann has one assist with seven shots on goal and an even plus-minus rating through four games with Hartford, which is scheduled to host the Bridgeport Islanders at 7 p.m. on Friday. Meanwhile, Berard has yet to register a point with a team-worst minus-five rating, while Perreault is tied for the Wolf Pack lead with two points (one goal and one assist) and a plus-one rating. However, the Rangers prefer not to rush Perreault, who is still only 20 and just entering his first full professional season.
Othmann has 25 games of NHL experience, including 22 last season. He’s posted only two assists with zero goals — a reality he’s admitted has been “tough” — but he may get a chance to remedy that soon. The Rangers have lost five of their last six and have a huge void in their top six due to the ongoing absence of Vincent Trocheck, who’s on long-term injured reserve with an upper-body injury and isn’t eligible to return until Nov. 1 at the earliest.
Could the Rangers look to Othmann for a youthful jolt? The team is scheduled to practice Saturday in advance of Sunday’s 8 p.m. ET contest against the Flames.
Oct 24, 2025
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