Brennan Othmann Offered Blunt Assessment of Time With NY Rangers

Brennan Othmann didn't have a great tenure with the New York Rangers.

Jan 31, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Rangers left wing Brennan Othmann (78) warms up against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

One of the knocks against the New York Rangers in recent years has been their inability to develop top picks from the NHL draft.

From 2017 through 2021, the team had nine first-round draft picks. Only two of them, forward Alexis Lafreniere and defenseman Braden Schnieder, selected Nos. 1 and 19 in the 2020 NHL Draft, remain with the franchise.

The first-round pick from that span who moved on from the franchise most recently was Brennan Othmann. Selected No. 16 overall in the 2021 NHL Draft, he never got close to living up to expectations with the Rangers. However, some would argue that he didn’t get as much of a chance to prove himself as he should have.

Ahead of the team’s recent game against the Calgary Flames, who acquired Othmann ahead of the trade deadline last season, the young forward did not hold back when discussing his time with New York.

Brennan Othmann didn't feel he got fair shot with Rangers

Oct 26, 2026; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames left wing Brennan Othmann (78) against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the second period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While head coach Mike Sullivan spoke highly of Othmann, his take on the situation was nowhere near as positive.

“I just never got a fair leash. I felt like others did, and I just wanted that opportunity somewhere else,” he said, via Vincent Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic (subscription required).

Othmann certainly isn’t the first player to have voiced concerns about how he was developed by the franchise. However, the others played under different head coaches; Othmann was also the first draft pick made by the Chris Drury-led front office, so things not working out was far from ideal.

To be fair, he didn’t produce at a high level with the NHL team. In 42 games, he had only three points, scoring one goal and handing out two assists. There were some positive underlying metrics, but it wasn’t enough for him to get consistent playing time on the ice, which created a tough situation to handle.

Eight months after #NYR traded Brennan Othmann, the former 1st-round pick claimed he didn’t get “a fair leash” in New York, called his lack of playing time last season “egregious” & highlighted his new support system with the Flames.https://t.co/15g5aBraZi via @nypostsports

— Mollie Walker (@MollieeWalkerr) November 11, 2026

“You play big minutes in Hartford, you play on the power play, you play on the penalty kill, and then you come up, and you don’t play anything,” Othmann said. “You play nine minutes a night, and it’s hard. I’ve always been a guy that coaches lean on, and when you’re not really a guy right away, it’s frustrating. You’re trying to learn on that, trying to build off that. That’s kind of the mental side of things that no one knows of.”

Parting ways with a first-round pick so early in their career certainly isn’t what any franchise wants to do, but this felt like a necessary move. Things weren’t clicking with the Rangers, and a fresh start was best for Othmann.

He has yet to truly find his footing with the Flames, but he is happy to have finally been traded to Calgary.