NEW YORK – On a team like the New York Rangers, legitimate battles for roster spots during the preseason are typically few and far between. President’s Trophy winners? Eastern Conference finalists? Groups like that are typically set, and if they’re not, additions made through free agency from surely no shortage of players who think heading there might be their best chance to win a Cup fill anything that’s up for grabs. With some unique circumstances and a strong camp, Victor Mancini may buck that trend. Listed at six-foot-three and 229 pounds, the big defenseman was largely off the prospect radar even after turning pro late last season after a three-year run at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, joining the American Hockey League’s Hartford WolfPack after a relatively non-descript collegiate career. But, with some significant development in his game this off-season as well as stalwart blueliner Ryan Lindgren set to miss several weeks, the 22-year-old may have an unlikely path to a spot on the Opening Night roster. “Overall, it’s been a lot of fun,” he told The Trentonian after the Rangers 5-2 preseason win over the Boston Bruins at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. “I’m very grateful to be where I am, and it’s just kind of fun to get to know the guys and get to play with them in an arena like this. I’m just trying to soak it in and enjoy every moment…(to try to make the team) I need to try to focus on myself right now; play my game, play the way I want to play. Just taking things day-by-day and working as hard as I can on the ice and being a good guy off the ice.” Mancini recorded two shots on goal, an even rating and one minor penalty on Thursday night, but never looked out of place particularly from an agility standpoint, which is surprising given his big frame. A lot of that comes from the work he put in this offseason, where he was still freshly removed from the longest year of his career, one that included seven regular season and ten postseason games in Hartford. “Every summer, you want to come in and be bigger, faster, stronger,” Mancini said. “Especially with the type of players you’re playing against at this level. But, I think for me, and I got a taste of that in Hartford after my last year in college, was how to manage such a season with so many games. When you’re in college, you’re only playing 35-40 games, and now you’re playing up into the 70’s and 80’s. Just figuring out how to take care of my body and being able to play that many games.” Mancini said there hasn’t been one particular player he’s leaned on for advice during camp, and praised everyone in a mostly veteran group for being a good role model and being easy to approach. One of those players included newly added Reilly Smith, a 2023 Stanley Cup winner with the Vegas Golden Knights who came over via trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins this offseason. With the thought being that he could be a good fit on the first line, the veteran 33-year-old forward recorded an assist on Thursday as he continues to adjust to his third team in as many seasons. “Any time you’re on a new team with new systems, you’re trying not to think too much,” Smith said. “Inherently, it comes into your game, and as soon as you’re thinking too much, you’re probably playing too slow. There’s going to be a lot of mistakes, but you try to iron those out as quickly as possible. Muscle memory is the best way to do it, so as many reps as you can do and get in, you start to not think about the systems and it just floats inherently.” HUGHES SCORES FOR DEVILS IN RETURN After an injury-riddled 2023-24 campaign that saw him get shut down late in the year after having missed significant chunks of the season, New Jersey Devils superstar forward Jack Hughes returned in a big way on Wednesday night. After undergoing offseason shoulder surgery, the 23-year-old scored in his team’s 5-3 preseason loss to the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night at the Prudential Center, and provided some hope that he’d be back in All-Star form for a team that will need him to do just that with an early start to their regular season set for the Global Series games against the Buffalo Sabres on October 4 and 5. “Good to get back in game action,” Hughes said in a brief post-game availability in the home locker room. “Looking forward to getting going, maybe playing Friday (on Long Island) and then getting off to Prague.”