The New York Rangers rookies are enjoying a day off with camp scheduled to conclude on Tuesday. So far, it’s been a great experience for the youngsters and a head start for many of the organizations top prospects.
Here’s a look at what’s on tap starting tomorrow:
- Monday, September 19 – On-ice testing – 12-3:00 PM (MSG Training Center)
- Tuesday, September 20 – Practice – 12:15 PM (MSG Training Center)
After that final practice, many of the rookies will head back to their teams in Europe or Juniors. The question that will be asked is which of them will be at the Rangers training camp when it opens on Wednesday, September 20.
Which New York Rangers rookies will make the cut?
The Rangers invited 13 forwards, 7 defenseman, and 3 goalies to rookie camp. No matter what, this was a tremendous experience for all of them.
“It means a lot for these young players going to these camps,” Wolf Pack coach Kris Knoblauch said. “They’re out on the ice with Panarin, Zibanejad, Kreider, Trouba and those guys, it can be overwhelming.”
So which players will we see make it to the main camp? Let’s start with the obvious choices.
Top prospects will make the cut!
You can start with Brennan Othmann, Will Cuylle, and Bobby Trivigno up front. They will be followed by Zac Jones and Matthew Robertson on defense, along with Dylan Garand in goal.
These are the Rangers most NHL ready players of the current prospect pool.
Who else has a chance?
When looking at the other possibilities of advancing to Rangers training camp, it’s hard to base it off their play in the two scrimmage losses at the hands of the Flyers rookies.
In goal, I believe Talyn Boyko certainly earned a longer look based simply off his heroics in Game 1, where he stopped over 20 shots in about 35 minutes of action.
On defense, Hunter Skinner and Ty Emberson look worthy of a longer evaluation.
Things start to get much more difficult to discern up front, where I believe certain players like Patrick Khoderenko will make it based on age. He signed as a free agent in 2020 and is now 23 years-old. It’s time the Rangers see up-close if he’s an NHL player.
In a similar category is Lauri Pajuniemi, who has a ton of offensive skill but needs work on his all around game. New York selected the 23 year-old in the fifth round of the 2018 Draft.
Outside of those two, I believe Karl Henriksson, Ryder Korczak, Matt Rempe, and Adam Edstrom are up for an extended stay. As for the 2022 NHL Draft picks on hand, Adam Sykora and Bryce McConnell-Barker are borderline to make it.
Another player from the recent draft class that I think has earned an invite to the main camp is Maxim Barbashev. The fifth round pick is not flashy, but plays all three zones well. He’s also a physical player and we know the Rangers absolutely love that.
Stay with Forever Blueshirts throughout training camp as we prepare you for the 2022-23 NY Rangers season.
Recap: Rangers vs Flyers Rookie Game 1 here.
Recap: Rangers vs Flyers Rookie Game 2 here.
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