The Rangers annual prospect camp opens up today, around a week ahead of the full training camp expected to begin around Wednesday next week. This year sees 14 forwards, 7 defensemen and 3 goalies attending the week-long camp, which includes two games against the Flyers prospects on Friday and Saturday.
Fourteen Ranger draft picks will attend, headlined by Brennan Othmann, Dylan Garand and Bryce McConnell-Barker. The only attendee from the 2023 draft that will attend, is 6th round pick (178th over all) – Dylan Roobroeck. The other remaining picks are all scheduled to go to College or play in the USHL, so would have to pay their own way to attend (as well as providing their own insurance coverage).
Sahil Panwar is a former team mate of Othmann at both Flint and Peterborough of the OHL. He had a noticeable Development Camp back in June and earned himself an AHL contract and a chance to attend camp. 24 year old defenseman Seth Barton signed an AHL contract over the Summer, and is a former Detroit Red Wing pick, no doubt familiar to Wolf Pack GM Ryan Martin.
Newly resigned defensive pair Ty Emberson (acquired in the trade that sent Patrik Nemeth to Arizona last year) and Brandon Scanlin, will attend, as will Bobby Trivigno, who entering his second full season as a pro.
Rounding out the camp roster are five invites:
Left Wing Max McCue who was a 5th round pick of the San Jose Sharks
18 year old C Luke McNamara who has one more year of draft eligibility and plays for Saginaw (OHL)
20 year old D Joe Arntsen who played last season with Lethbridge (OHL)
20 year old D Ryan McCleary who was a 7th round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins
18 year old D James Petrovski who also has draft eligibility and played with Othmann in Flint
As you can see from the roster, and the number of invites on Defense, the Rangers do have a bit of a gap there in terms of prospect. They did draft a couple of solid players in Drew Fortescue and Rasmus Larsson back in June, but they are likely at least 2 years if not more away from turning pro.