Season in Review: Ryan Gropp

Ryan Gropp knows how to produce offensively. He did it for four seasons with Seattle of the Western Hockey League that included a league championship in 2017.
But with his junior career behind him and his first season of professional hockey in the rearview mirror, Gropp said he has a better understanding of how important strong play away from the offensive zone is to having success at the next level.

"I think just my play away from the puck," Gropp said when asked what the biggest thing he learned following his first season with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League. "I've gotten better at that and really focused a lot on that. Just being good away from the puck and taking care of my D zone and being more responsible. I've really grown in that area."
Gropp, the Rangers' second-round pick in 2015, improved as the season went on and finished strong with the Pack, scoring four of his 14 goals over the final eight games of the season. He finished the year with 21 points in 59 games, third among Wolf Pack rookies.

Like all first-year pros, the 21-year-old had to adjust to a different level of competition, namely facing pros older and bigger than those of the junior ranks.
"The biggest thing for me was the strength of guys and how strong they are down low," Gropp said. "It's hard to get to the net in this league and you don't have much time with the puck. I think that was the biggest transition for me, and I think I'm still learning as I go here."
Gropp has made strides though. Jed Ortmeyer, the Rangers' Director of Player Development, said Gropp's strength is when he has the puck, but he's also improved finding the puck rather than letting it find him.
"He's at his best when he has the puck. He proved that in juniors when he put up big numbers," Ortmeyer said. "It's hard to get the puck in pro hockey, and he has to work hard to get it and work hard to be stronger with the puck when he has it. He has come a long way since the beginning of the year."
Gropp's success has been built on his play away from his own net. Entering his draft year in 2015, the Kamloops, B.C.-native was regarded as having arguably the best shot in the entire class, and he put up three consecutive 30-goal seasons, including 35 his final year in Seattle.
But in the years since he was taken 41st overall, Gropp has made it a point of improving his play in his own zone. He improved his plus-minus rating year after year in Seattle, going from a minus-5 his first season to a plus-25 in his final. He also worked extensively on the penalty kill with the Thunderbirds, becoming a player not often used in that situation to one of its most.
"That's a huge part of the game, being a 200-foot guy," he said. "If you're working hard in your D zone, you're going to have the puck way more and be able to play offense way more. That's the biggest thing I've learned and I'm still working on that."

With that said, Gropp's best quality remains his offensive ability, and Wolf Pack Head Coach Keith McCambridge understands that.
"The positives out of his game are his offensive instincts," he said. "He's got a real nice shot, a nice release to the way he shoots the puck. He's a real good young man who wants to learn and wants to get better. We've been able to see the strengths of his game and work on those and make sure there's consistency with the play in the defensive zone and without the puck."
Like many in the Rangers around Gropp's age, this offseason is an important one for him. He said he'd be returning home to Kamloops to train, hoping to add some weight and fill out his 6-foot-2 frame.
The opportunities that appear available to young players in the organization has Gropp even more motivated to come to camp ready to compete for a spot in New York.
"I think it's really exciting for all of us," he said. "I think lots of opportunities are coming up and we're all just focused on the same thing of having a good summer and come into camp as ready as we can be. We've got the same mindset and we're excited."
Seeing his teammates, especially his roommate Filip Chytil, get called up to the Rangers down the stretch certainly adds to the motivation.
"You watch them on TV and it really makes you want to work that much harder," he said. "It kind of makes you realize [the NHL] is closer than you think."