Birthday on Broadway: Inside Brennan Othmann’s memorable Rangers debut 

An individual’s 21st birthday is always special as it typically signifies a milestone of officially becoming an adult, or as other people simply put it, as being old enough to drink alcohol legally. The New York Rangers’ 16th overall pick from the 2021 NHL Draft had a 21st birthday for the ages. Not because he celebrated at a bar in New York City, but because he got to play in his first ever National Hockey League game under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden. 

Brennan Othmann, who is one of the Rangers’ most highly touted prospects, made his NHL debut on Thursday night against the Chicago Blackhawks — and made quite the first impression. In a matchup where a lot of the focus was on Connor Bedard, Othmann thrived as he led all skaters with five shots on goal. 

“I think I played well. I wasn’t too concerned or worried about trying to score. I just wanted to play and try to get a couple of shots on net and just have fun,” Othmann told Daily Faceoff. 

Othmann was noticeable and effective right from his first shift and the Rangers’ head coach, Peter Laviolette, felt the same.

“I noticed him all night”, Laviolette said in the postgame presser. 

In his first year playing professionally, Othmann has spent the entire season with the Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. Despite having a strong training camp, the Rangers brass felt that it would be more beneficial for one of their most notable prospects to marinate down in Hartford rather than having all the pressure in the world on his shoulders on opening night. Othmann is his own biggest critic and seems to be a very self-aware guy. When Othmann was trying to make the team out of camp, he emphasized that he had to try to get rid of some of the habits that he picked up playing junior hockey. Based on the eye test in Thursday night’s game, it appeared that the 28 games spent in the AHL allowed him to be out with the old and in with the new as far as habits go. Someone who is familiar with the feeling of being called up for their first NHL game is Rangers defenseman Zac Jones, who didn’t seem surprised with Othmann’s performance. “

I thought he was great,” Jones said. “He was buzzing out there. He was hitting everything, shooting the puck, making plays left and right. He didn’t look out of place at all. He looked like he was an everyday NHLer from Day 1. I was really happy for him and really thrilled to see him succeed.”

Getting called up from the AHL is a different emotion for everyone when it happens for the first time, but the moment didn’t appear to be too big for Othmann.

“I was a little bit nervous my first few shifts”, Othmann admitted, but with his parents in the building he knew how special the evening was for not only him, but his family.

“I just wanted to have fun and enjoy the moment. You only get your first game once,” he added.

There was a critical moment in Thursday’s game when Blake Wheeler got into a fight with Jarred Tinordi of the Blackhawks. This put Wheeler in the box for five minutes, which resulted in a little promotion for Othmann.

In the blink of an eye, Othmann went from an AHL player, to being double shifted in the third period of his first ever game, which came as a nice surprise to him.“

“(laughs) I was a little surprised getting double shifted there,” Othmann said with a big smile. “I think that’s a confidence thing for myself playing in my first game. It’s easy when you go out there and play with Mika [Zibanejad] and Kreids [Chris Kreider]. It was a good adjustment.”

It was evident that Othmann felt way more comfortable and confident with his game in the third period.

For Laviolette, putting Othmann with Zibanejad and Kreider was a no-brainer with how he performed in the first 40 minutes of the game. 

“We just wanted to get him more ice,” the Rangers head coach told Daily Faceoff. “Sometimes if you’re not on the power play and penalty kill, your minutes don’t get out there the way you want to. Blake did a hell of a job. Thought it was a good spot to plug [Othmann] in.”

Luckily for Othmann, he has some familiarity with players that are currently up with the big club. He’s staying at the same hotel with Jonny Brodzinski, who was the captain down in Harford before his call up to the Rangers about a month ago. Brodzinski has now played 18 games with the Rangers this season and has looked after the 21-year-old the past couple of games. Brodzinski gave Othmann a ride to the game and considering that they were linemates, he helped keep Othmann’s nerves to a minimum. Othmann also noted that Kreider had plenty of encouraging words on the bench throughout the game.

You’d think after an emotionally draining day that Othmann would want to relax and not think about hockey after the game. That wasn’t the case. When he got home he watched Florida [Panthers] and Vegas [Golden Knights] play. He’s a confirmed hockey guy, but not all players are like that.

“It’s definitely tough to get your adrenaline down after your first game, but for me I think just hanging out with my dog gets my mind off of hockey,” Jones said.

Now that his first game is over and done with, Othmann has a great opportunity to prove that he belongs at the NHL level.

“It’s a special one playing in your first game, but to get that out of the way is good. It’s easy because you go into the second game and however many more after that, but you feel settled in,” Othmann said.

Like I said before, everyone’s 21st birthday is a special one.”

I had the chance to shoot on Jonathan Quick, so that was pretty cool,” Othmann replied when asked if he received any presents from the team.

The Rangers will take on the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night and it will be another opportunity for him to prove that he belongs. 

This was a birthday that Othmann won’t soon forget. 

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