Brett Berard has always seized the opportunity. Now he hopes to do the same with the Rangers

A holiday wasnt going to stop Brett and Brady Berard from head-to-head competition.

Neither was a crowded house.

The Berards have always invited family to their Rhode Island home for Christmas Eve, and around a dozen people came the year Brett was 6 and Brady was 4.

They all lounged on the L-shaped living room couch waiting for dinner.

Unperturbed, Brett and Brady decided it was time for knee hockey.

A tree stood in one part of the room, but the brothers made use of the space near the stone fireplace.

Advertisement Brady felt a little ambitious that evening.

He shoved his older brother to gain possession of the ball.

Pleased with himself, he watched Brett fly toward the couch.

Brett was less than amused.

He got to his feet and pushed his brother back.

Bradys head banged the edge of the fireplace.

He ran to his parents crying, a cut bleeding from his forehead.

It was chaos, said their dad, David.

Brady and both his parents spent four hours in the hospital.

Brady got stitches while Brett and the rest of the family ate dinner.

Now 20, Brady still has a scar: a physical reminder of the competitive fire and feistiness that has carried Brett to professional hockey.

Hes had it since he was 6 years old pushing me into the fireplace, said Brady, a forward at Boston College.

Now 22 and with the Rangers organization, Brett Berard has made that tenacity known at the NHL level.

Its helped him seize opportunities throughout his life, no matter how slim they might have seemed.

Hes trying to do the same in New York, where hes emerged as one of the clubs top forward prospects.

Rangers coach Peter Laviolette praised Berards compete level during training camp, then gave him 19 NHL games of action when injuries and trades opened up slots in the lineup.

The 5-foot-9 Berard was imperfect but showed potential, scoring three goals and finishing his stint with 7 points before going back to AHL Hartford in January.

One NHL scout described his work rate as contagious.

Berards scrappiness came out, too, most notably in December against Dallas.

Lian Bichsel, a 6-foot-7 Stars defenseman, shoved him after a whistle.

The 10-inch height difference didnt stop Berard from going right back at his opponent, pushing him until two officials split them up.

Plays a little bit of a rat game in a good way, said Kraken center Matty Beniers, Berards childhood friend and offseason training partner.

He tries to emulate a (Brad) Marchand-esque-type player being that smaller size.

Advertisement Hockey has always been a defining element of Berards life.

His dad is a college coach and brought 2-year-old Brett a mini Maple Leafs stick and net after a work trip to Toronto.

Brett stickhandled ABC blocks into the net, pretending they were pucks.

He and Brady used to watch NHL Network while eating cereal every morning, and sometimes they got to skip school to go to work with their dad, who coached at nearby Providence College for most of their childhood.

That lifelong passion has helped turn Berard into a developmental success story for the Rangers, who selected him in the fifth round of the 2020 NHL Draft.

Getting NHL games out of a late-round pick is far from a guarantee, so thats already been a win for New York.

Now hes trying to become something more.

(He) just has always had to prove himself, said David, now the Stonehill College head coach.

Hes always maybe not had the easiest path to get there, but because he loves to play and because he believes in himself, hes willing to do the work to show people that hes capable.

Berard wasnt supposed to make the 2020-21 World Junior team.

USA Hockey invited him to the teams camp as an 18-year-old, mostly for insurance and so the coaches could get a look at him for the next year when he had a better chance at making the roster.

Nate Leaman, the U.S.

coach who also coached Berard at Providence College, said he was probably our last invite to camp.

That was almost a good thing, David said.

He just went out and played.

Berard hung around, but he assumed his time with the team was done entering the final day of camp.

Then forward Johnny Beecher, now on the Boston Bruins, tested positive for COVID-19.

He and his roommate, Thomas Bordeleau, had to sit out of the tournament for pandemic protocols.

The circumstances might not have been ideal, but they gave Berard a chance.

He made the roster by default.

Advertisement Throughout the tournament, Berard worked his way up from 13th forward to a member of the Americans third line.

It was then Leaman first realized Berard had pro potential.

His forward was relentless, won races to pucks and created energy for the team.

He finished with 5 points and a plus-8 rating in seven games, and the U.S.

won gold.

Ahead of the medal ceremony, he and Beniers stood arm in arm.

If you look at his career, it was probably in a lot of ways the pivotal moment for him as a player and a person, David said.

I think if he doesnt have that experience overall, hes not able to use that mentally, emotionally to get to the point that hes gotten to now.

Once he got that opportunity, he proved he clearly belonged, Leaman added.

Berard made an impact on a future teammate at the tournament, too.

Braden Schneider, whose Canadian team lost the gold medal game, said seeing Berard at their first Rangers camp together brought back painful memories of silver.

He was a little buzz saw (at World Juniors), same as he is now, Schneider said with a smile, describing Berard as a piece of crap on the ice.

The tournament wasnt the first time Berard took advantage of an unexpected chance.

He tried out for the U.S.

National Team Development Program after showing well as a 14-year-old at a national festival.

He was tiny at the time, probably around 5-foot-4, his dad said.

Berard, whose brother is 6-foot-1, joked he was always waiting for a growth spurt, but a huge one never came.

His size or long odds to make the team didnt stop him from having a good tryout.

When some of the players picked ahead of him opted to play for USHL or Canadian major junior teams, the program offered Berard a spot.

He moved to Michigan for the rest of high school so he could be part of the program.

Advertisement (He) ended up being one of the best players on the NTDP team, said Beniers, who played with him there.

Thats kind of his story: being the smaller guy, being the guy who gets a little overlooked.

Though it goes against conventional wisdom, Berard doesnt view his smaller stature as something that holds him back.

Hes quick, and his size makes him elusive.

Scott Wheeler, one of The Athletic s prospect gurus, wrote recently that Berard is a testament to smaller players advantage in getting inside body position.

Wheeler ranked Berard as the Rangers fourth-best prospect and third among forwards.

While at the USNTDP, Berard played under coach Seth Appert, now an assistant with Buffalo.

Appert showed him video of Marchand and Brendan Gallagher, smaller forwards who play with an edge and arent afraid of scrums.

The clips werent necessarily of big offensive plays.

Instead, Appert showed his young player the tenacity with which Marchand and Gallagher played.

Hes kind of the one who molded me on this identity, Berard said.

Brady Berard already knew about his older brothers feistiness.

He saw it growing up when they shot hoops outside or fought over a TV remote.

But Brett didnt need it as much on the ice against lesser competition growing up.

Back then, pure offense could carry him.

That changed when he got to the development program.

Berard needed to add to his game to compete with the countrys top young players.

Appert helped push him, and David Berard saw the results in his sons second year at the program.

Brett finished third on the team in points and tied for second in goals, all while not backing down from bigger players.

It kind of became his calling card, David said.

Youve got to be quick, youve got to be feisty, youve got to get your nose there, youve got to get to the net, youve got to have second efforts, youve got to work.

Berards edge made him different, especially as a smaller player.

He jumped out, much like he has since turning professional.

Beniers describes Berard as someone who has always had a knack for scoring goals.

Watching his son grow up, David wondered if that would ever slow down.

It hasnt yet.

Berard can still put the puck in the net.

He led the Hartford Wolf Pack with 25 goals in his first full year of professional hockey, which he said helped with his confidence.

This year he has nine goals in 26 AHL games almost the same pace as last year, but with an increased point rate.

Advertisement Hes been good, especially at the AHL level, said one scout for an NHL team.

Doesnt have blazing north-south speed but is shifty and has good quickness in small areas.

That scout views Berards size as his biggest downside but noted he isnt scared at all and has time to get stronger.

He views Berard as a potential middle-six NHLer.

Wheeler also sees him as a future everyday player , writing hes on a good path toward a career as an effective bottom-sixer who is oddly effective on the cycle and makes things happen shift to shift.

Called up in November, Berards first taste of the NHL came when the Rangers were amid a 4-15 skid.

Vibes in the dressing room were low; it was an odd time for him to go through many of his career firsts.

Berard still tried to enjoy the whole experience.

Playing in the NHL was something he dreamed about.

It still feels brand new, he said during the stretch.

Hopefully that doesnt go away anytime soon.

Berard got sent back to Hartford in January, shortly after New York claimed Arthur Kaliyev on waivers.

Laviolette called Berards first NHL stint really good.

The game moved fast for the winger at points New York didnt generate as much as opponents with Berard on the ice at five-on-five but there were encouraging moments.

Berard helped kick off the Rangers strong January by scoring the game-winning goal on Jan.

2 against the Bruins.

The goal was his first at Madison Square Garden and came against his childhood favorite team.

He punched the air and leaped into the glass after seeing the puck go past Jeremy Swayman.

I kind of lost control of my body there, he said.

Now back in the AHL, Berard is getting more ice time, including reps on the power play.

He could get another call-up before the season ends, especially if the Rangers trade veterans Reilly Smith and Jimmy Vesey at the trade deadline.

The roster construction is out of Berards hands, but he knows his play in Hartford will have a say in his future NHL chances.

Thats his focus.

Hes had to create opportunities before.

The mission now, as always, is to seize what comes next.

(Top photo: Sarah Stier / Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.