Rangers Feel EJ Emery's Development Is Going In The Right Direction

What’s going on with the development of EJ Emery?

The New York Rangers selected Emery with the 30th pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, as he’s currently one of the team’s most intriguing defensive prospects in their pipeline. 

This past season, Emery played at the University of North Dakota, where he struggled from a statistical standpoint, only recording one point in 31 games. 

However, the Rangers’ Director of Player Development, Jed Ortmeyer, believes that Emery’s development is on the right track and he showed flashes of promise at the NCAA level. 

“He had a really good year. He’s one of the youngest defensemen in college hockey as a true freshman,” Ortmeyer said. “It's a tough league he was playing in. He was able to step in and have a big role and play big minutes for them. I think his development is heading in the right direction and he’s on a great path at a great school. We are excited about what he’s doing and where he’s going.”

A big point of emphasis for Emery this summer was working on gaining muscle in order to better prepare himself for the physical aspects of college hockey. 

“I just realized I have to keep getting bigger and stronger because when you are playing against 25-year-olds, it’s a man’s game… I gained about 10 pounds of muscle, so just going to keep getting bigger and hopefully I can add on more muscle at the start of the season,” Emery said.

Before making the jump to the NCAA, Emery played in the United States Hockey League and was part of the U.S. Hockey National Development Program.

The 19-year-old is expected to return to North Dakota to play his sophomore season, as there’s no rush for him to play professional hockey as of right now. 

Ortmeyer doesn't want to speed through Emery’s development process. He feels Emery is not only making strides as a player, but his mind is in the right place. 

emery“I can’t put a timeline on it, everybody develops at their own pace,” Ortmeyer said. “He’s growing into his body. He’s put in a lot of work with the nutritionist and everybody to make sure he’s developing as best as he can, as fast as he can. He’s great to work with. He's eager to get better. Again, he’s in a great situation in North Dakota and we are excited to keep working with him.”