There were some sizable expectations for forward Brennan Othmann when he heard his name called by the New York Rangers with the No. 16 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft.

He was the first player that the Chris Drury-led front office selected, a move that would quickly sour. Hindsight is 20/20, but seven picks after Othmann was off the board, Wyatt Johnson was selected. To this point, the Dallas Stars forward is the most productive player from that draft class.

Othmann ended up playing in only 42 games with the Rangers, recording one goal and two assists in 414:32 of total ice time. Waived ahead of the regular season at the end of training camp, the writing was on the wall for him, and he requested a trade from the organization a few weeks later.

“It was obvious that it wasn’t really gonna work out,” Othmann said after Wednesday’s morning skate at Scotiabank Saddledome, ahead of his first game against the team that drafted him, via Vincent Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic (subscription required). “It was kind of a mutual thing.”

Brennan Othmann happy to have trade request finally fulfilled

That trade request wasn’t fulfilled for nearly five months. It is fair to assume that value for the former first-round pick wasn’t very high around the league given the lack of impact in the NHL thus far in his career, more so than New York hoping things would eventually work out.

Frustrated by how things were transpiring up until the trade deadline on March 6, Othmann thought his wait to be traded would last even longer. However, as he was heading to PeoplesBank Arena, ready to suit up for the Hartford Wolf Pack, he got a call; the Calgary Flames completed a deal just ahead of the deadline buzzer to acquire him in exchange for Jacob Battaglia, a forward prospect.

“We don’t know why it took all year, but it took all year,” Othmann said. “Maybe it was the sense that Chris or whatever wanted it to work out and stuff, but I’m happy that he finally just kind of said, ‘There you go.'”

That wasn’t how anyone wanted things to go, but it was best for both sides given what has transpired. Othmann appeared in 17 games for the Rangers last season and averaged only 9:53 per game.

Head coach Mike Sullivan gave the young forward some praise, but noted there was work still to do with his development.

“When we were working with him, he was still raw from just a player standpoint, but he certainly has a lot of really admirable qualities,” said Sullivan, who called Othmann “a great kid.”

Othmann added that he felt he never got into the good graces of the coaching staff, per Mercogliano. He also raised some questions about how the organization went about developing him.

“I hate bringing this up all the time, but being a first-round pick and the opportunity I had in Hartford, and then coming up (to the NHL), it was just, I don’t know,” he said, trailing off. Then he concluded, “The time that I had last year was pretty egregious.”

Those are some strong words for the former first-round pick. He will have a chance to get his career back on track with the Flames, as things aren’t always going to work out between draft picks and teams.