Season in Review: Brandon Crawley

Brandon Crawley's stint with the Rangers got off to a bang in September when he scored a goal in his first preseason game, in his home state of New Jersey no less.
The positive experience of that training camp led nicely into the regular season, his first as a pro in Hartford after three years with London (OHL). It's been about learning and maturing both on and off the ice for the 21-year-old, and the results are positive.

"Being around those NHL guys [in training camp] and learning how they prepare and focus and take all the stuff really seriously," Crawley said. "Just being around those guys gave me a lot of experience to learn how to act and really how to be a pro. I think that short stint in training camp was really eye-opening for me and it's something that I'm going to take into the summer and really focus on.
"Now," he added, "I understand how to be a pro better. I think I'm going to be able to apply that moving forward."
A throwback defenseman of sorts, Crawley, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 205 lbs., led the Wolf Pack with 99 PIMs to go along with two goals and three assists for five points in 64 games.

The transition from London to Hartford has gone well, according to Crawley, thanks in large part to head coach Keith McCambridge and his staff with the Wolf Pack.
"I think it's gone very smoothly. There's been some transitional things like learning how to play against those stronger, older guys, but the coaches have been so hands on down here," he said. "I tip my cap to Keith and [Assistant Coach] Joe [Mormina] because they did a good job with all the younger guys in making sure you feel comfortable and confident every day. I think they really made that transition easy for me and I'm really thankful for them."
McCambridge also believes Crawley's first year as a pro went well. He said Crawley, who was taken in the fourth-round of last year's NHL Draft, arrived in Hartford "raw," but has built on his skill level and strong skating.
"As a young first-year defenseman, it's been a good year for him," McCambridge stated. "He has that old-school mold of a defenseman that you look at. We like his first year. Lots to build on, but also lots of positives."
Jed Ortmeyer, the Rangers' Director of Player Development, said he's seen Crawley make progress throughout the season, both on the ice and off it.
"I think Crawley has made big strides in both his maturity and his ability to know when to jump into the play and when not to, and defend against other teams' top players and play a really gritty, hard-to-play-against style."
With a year of pro under his belt, Crawley said the goal over the offseason is a strong summer of training at home in New Jersey as well as skating at the Rangers' Training Center in Westchester with a hope of making an impression on management and stand out in what could be a competitive competition for a role on the Rangers' blueline.
"I think going into training camp is going to be really exciting with the way the organization is going," he said. "Being a young guy and knowing there could be an opportunity there is very motivating and is something I'm really going to focus on during the summer. This is a big summer for me, and I'm going to ramp it up in training."