Rangers defenseman Scott Morrow hoping to make good impression in rookie camp

GREENBURGH — Scott Morrow was surprised but happy to get the call from Chris Drury on July 1 telling him he’d just been acquired by the Rangers as part of the K’Andre Miller sign-and-trade deal with Carolina.

“It’s pretty cool that they traded away a really good player, and I was part of the return,’’ Morrow said Thursday at the second day of the Rangers’ rookie camp at MSG Training Center. “K’Andre was a big part of the team here. So if they value me enough to want me back in a package like that for a player that good, then it shows that they think somewhat highly of me. And I just want to prove them right for including me in that.’’

Morrow, a 6-2, 210-pound, righthanded-shooting defenseman who was a second-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft by Carolina, started last season with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. He had 13 goals and 39 points in 52 games and made the AHL All-Star Game, but he was pulled from that when he was called up to the Hurricanes in early February. He played 14 games for Carolina in the regular season, recording a goal and five assists. He also appeared in five playoff games.

A native of Darien, Connecticut, who grew up a Philadelphia Flyers fan because his father, Steve, had been drafted by them, Morrow will be very much in the mix to make the roster out of training camp. He was careful, though, to avoid saying anything about his chances of making the opening-night roster.

“Honestly, I’m not focused on the outcome of camp as much as just the process of being in my second pro year now, trying to show how much I’ve grown, trying to show a brand-new organization what kind of player I am,’’ he said. “They traded for me, so they obviously see something in me. And I just want to make the best first impression that I can.’’

He’ll have an early chance to get started on that first impression because the Rangers’ rookies will play two games against the Flyers’ rookies Friday night and Saturday in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Last year, Adam Edstrom and Victor Mancini impressed in the rookie games and both rode their fast starts to opening-night roster spots.

“It’s like the first two games of the season,’’ forward Adam Sykora said of the rookie games. “So everybody’s excited. Everybody wants to show the best as they can. And I think it’s a really good opportunity for us to just show we are ready from the beginning.’’

If Morrow is to make the team out of camp, that would mean — presuming no injuries — the Rangers would be carrying four righthanders on defense, with Adam Fox, Will Borgen and Braden Schneider currently ahead of Morrow on the depth chart.

But Morrow said he played on his off (left) side “probably half the time in college’’ at UMass, so if he’s asked to play on the left, “it’s definitely something I’m comfortable with.’’

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.