Talking Pack: Five Rookie Series Reactions

Welcome to Talking Pack, a weekly offseason column about the Hartford Wolf Pack, exclusively at Blueshirt Banter. Every week, we'll catch you up on what's going on with the Rangers' AHL affiliate as they prepare for their 30th season in the fall.

Every September, New York Rangers hockey returns with the annual Rookie Series. The two-game set sees the Blueshirts' prospects head to Allentown, Pennsylvania for a weekend series against the prospects from the Philadelphia Flyers and marks the unofficial start to the season. The Rangers were swept in the series, dropping Saturday's game by a 3-2 final score while falling in Sunday's contest 4-1.

While the Rookie Series games are exhibition contests, they serve a purpose. The games allow recent draftees to get their first taste of playing pro hockey in North America while preparing more polished prospects to compete for a spot on the NHL roster in training camp. We've seen plenty of players turn strong performances in the Rookie Series into breaking camp with the Rangers, most notably forward Noah Laba last season and defenseman Victor Mancini two campaigns ago.

Following last year's Rookie Series, I discussed four takeaways from the weekend set. Today, we'll be running it back and diving into five reactions from this year's Rookie Series.

1) Roobroeck Could Be Dark Horse in NHL Camp

Heading into training camp, the Rangers have a number of options to round out their bottom six. Veterans like Eeli Tolvanen and Taylor Raddysh will compete with young players like Tye Kartye and Jaroslav Chmelar for ice time, while Laba and Joe Veleno are set to hold down the center ice.

If you're looking for a dark horse, however, keep your eye on center Dylan Roobroeck. The towering forward scored the Rangers' first goal of the series, deflecting a shot home on the power play, and had an entertaining tilt with Flyers prospect Ty Murchison at the end of the first game.

Roobroeck turned pro at the end of the 2023-24 season, making his AHL debut in the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs. Since his debut, Roobroeck has suited up in every game the Wolf Pack have played, logging all 72 games in each of the past two seasons. The former Oshawa General led the Wolf Pack with 20 goals during his rookie season in 2024-25 and isn't afraid to mix it up when necessary.

The Rangers have experienced center depth, with Justin Dowling and Juuso Parssinen both available behind Laba and Veleno. However, don't count out Roobroeck making an impression in camp and potentially earning NHL games later this season. He's developed into a well-rounded player in Hartford over the past two seasons, and a quality camp could allow him to make his NHL debut.