Drew Fortescue

Drew Fortescue
Born (2005-04-28) April 28, 2005
Pearl River, New York, U.S.
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position Defense
Shoots Left
NHL team (P)
Cur. team		 New York Rangers
Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL)
NHL draft 90th overall, 2023
New York Rangers

Drew Fortescue (born April 28, 2005) is an American professional ice hockey player who is a defenseman for the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect to the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Fortescue was drafted in the third round, 90th overall, by the Rangers in the 2023 NHL entry draft.

Playing career

Before playing for Boston College, he was in the USA Hockey National Team Development Program (USNTDP).[1][2] He also played youth hockey for the Mid-Fairfield Rangers of Connecticut's Mid-Fairfield Youth Hockey Association, where he was coached by former NHL star Martin St. Louis, who he credits for helping his development.[3] On the Mid-Fairfield Rangers, Fortescue was a teammate of Luke Drury, the nephew of Rangers general manager Chris Drury who later drafted him.[4] He also played for Don Bosco Preparatory High School.[5]

Fortescue was drafted by the New York Rangers in the third round of the 2023 NHL entry draft with the 90th overall pick.[6] The Rangers traded a 7th round draft pick to move up one spot in the draft to make sure they could draft Fortescue.[4]

In 2023–24, his freshman season at Boston College, Fortescue recorded four goals and four assists with a +13 plus/minus rating.[7] As a sophomore in 2024–25, he had 11 assists and a +28 rating.[7][8] Despite his improvement, he chose not to sign a professional contract with the Rangers in order to return to college for his junior year.[8] Fortescue said of the decision:

Obviously, your goal is to [go pro]. But I think what’s best for me, and talking to those guys in the player development staff, and being on the same page as all of them, my goal is to focus on the year coming up and we’ll see what happens going forward. Talking to everyone here, and on my end, too, it's when I'm ready. It's what they want as well. But I think putting on that weight, being a little bit more physically ready, is [important].[8]

His offensive numbers improved to four goals and 10 assists for 14 points in the 2025–26 season at Boston College, while still playing on the team's top defensive pairing.[9] He signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Rangers on March 21, 2026, at the end of the Boston College season.[10]

International play

Medal record
Men's ice hockey
Representing the  United States
World Junior Championships
2024 Sweden
2025 Canada
World U18 Championships
2023 Switzerland

He won a gold medal for the United States at the 2023 World U18 Championships.[11][5] He had a goal and two assists, as well as a +9 rating, in the tournament.[12]

He was selected to the United States junior team at the 2024 World Junior Championships and won a gold medal.[11][13][14] He had a goal and three assists during the tournament, including an assist in the final against Sweden.[13][15]

He was later included on the roster of the United States team for the 2025 World Junior Championships and won a second gold medal.[11][16] Fortescue had no points in the tournament but played on United States' top defense pairing and wound up with a +6 rating, tied for third-best among tournament defensemen.[17]

During the semifinal game of the 2025 World Junior Championships, the The Sports Network announcers said that "Sometimes you don't notice him in a game and it's because he's doing everything right. He's always in position and plays it simple. He's a Rangers draft pick — a good, solid, reliable defender coming your way pretty soon."[18]

Playing style

Prior to the 2024–25 season, USA Today writer Vincent Z. Mercogliano rated Fortescue as the Rangers' sixth-best prospect, The Hockey News rated him as the Rangers' fifth-best prospect, and McKeen's Hockey rated him as the Rangers' ninth-best prospect.[6][19][20] He is a reliable stay-at-home defenseman who has not produced much offense.[6][1] He is also a strong penalty killer.[1] The Hockey News said "He makes life hard for the opposition and uses his stick well."[19] Scout Jess Rubenstein rated him as the Rangers' best defenseman prospect entering the 2024–25 season and said "I like his size and on-ice vision. He plays a clean, physical game but needs more offense."[19] One NHL executive compared him to Rangers' defenseman Ryan Lindgren.[21] Boston College associate head coach Brendan Buckley particularly praised Fortescue's breakout passes and said "He is exceptional at going back and getting pucks and making a good first touch with pucks and I think that is so valuable in today's hockey, being able to have a reliable defenseman back there that can get pucks and move them quickly up to his forwards."[11] According to Eagles' head coach Greg Brown:

He was relied on in key situations. Right away as a freshman, he showed that he could handle playing against the other team's top players...He's very good at breaking pucks out. He can see his options quickly and find the open guy. I think that was probably his one of his top strengths...He had no fear in finding the middle if that was the right play, and he could execute on a high level."[6]

Before the 2025–26 season, Mercogliano and Peter Baugh of The Athletic rated Fortescue as the Rangers' seventh-best prospect.[22] The Hockey News writer Stan Fischler also rated him as the Rangers' seventh-best prospect.[23] Brown said of Fortescue before the season that "He eats a ton of minutes against the top forwards in all of college hockey. He's very effective and efficient, and has the mental game to read very well and understand what he needs to do to defend."[22]

Personal life

Fortescue's cousin C.J. McGee is a professional ice hockey defenseman with the Savannah Ghost Pirates of the ECHL.[11][5] Another cousin, Liam McLinskey, plays for the Charlotte Checkers of the American Hockey League (AHL) and was a top 10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award while playing in college for the Holy Cross Crusaders.[11]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2021–22 U.S. National Development Team USHL 34 2 6 8 16 — — — — —
2022–23 U.S. National Development Team USHL 22 0 5 5 6 — — — — —
2023–24 Boston College HE 40 4 4 8 36 — — — — —
2024–25 Boston College HE 36 0 11 11 42 — — — — —
2025–26 Boston College HE 36 4 10 14 47 — — — —
NCAA totals 112 8 25 33 125 — — — — —

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2023 United States U18 7 1 2 3 6
2024 United States WJC 7 1 3 4 6
2025 United States WJC 7 0 0 0 4
Junior totals 21 2 5 7 16

References

  1. ^ a b c Henes, Sam (March 20, 2024). "Rangers' Understated Prospect Drew Fortescue Developing at BC". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  2. ^ Rankin, Kim (September 20, 2024). "2024-25 Boston College Men's Hockey Player Profile: Drew Fortescue". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  3. ^ Cowan, Stu (December 22, 2023). "Canadiens' Martin St. Louis had big impact while coaching youth hockey". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  4. ^ a b Rosen, Dan (June 29, 2023). "Rangers draft pick Fortescue has ties to GM Drury, New York". nhl.com. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Rapay, Eugene (April 11, 2024). "Don Bosco alums leaving a mark on college hockey". Herald-News. pp. S1, S3. Retrieved October 13, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b c d Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (September 11, 2024). "NY Rangers 2024 prospect rankings: Part 1, Nos. 6-10". Lohud. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Drew Fortescue". Elite Prospects. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  8. ^ a b c Braziller, Zach (July 1, 2025). "Drew Fortescue isn't in rush to make Rangers leap from Boston College". MSN. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  9. ^ Crane, Andrew (March 21, 2026). "Rangers signing Boston College star Drew Fortescue to entry-level contract". New York Post. Retrieved March 22, 2026.
  10. ^ "Rangers Agree to Terms with Drew Fortescue". NHL.com. March 21, 2026. Retrieved March 23, 2026.
  11. ^ a b c d e f Wheeler, Scott (December 30, 2024). "The New York roots that have led - and followed - Rangers' Drew Fortescue to World Juniors". The Athletic. Retrieved January 2, 2025.
  12. ^ Walker, Mollie (June 29, 2023). "Inside look at Rangers' second-day 2023 NHL Draft picks". New York Post. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  13. ^ a b Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (January 5, 2024). "Rangers prospects Gabe Perreault, Drew Fortescue capture World Juniors gold with Team USA". Lohud. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  14. ^ Walker, Mollie (December 24, 2023). "Gabe Perreault headlines Rangers prospects competing at World Junior Championship". New York Post. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  15. ^ Kennedy, Ryan (January 5, 2024). "USA Beats Sweden for 2024 World Juniors Gold". The Hockey News. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  16. ^ Rankin, Kim (December 2, 2024). "Six Boston College Men's Hockey Players Named to 2025 U.S. National Junior Team Preliminary Roster". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 3, 2024.
  17. ^ Walker, Mollie (January 6, 2025). "Rangers' burgeoning youth providing plenty of hope for bright future". New York Post. Retrieved January 7, 2025.
  18. ^ Godlewski, Daniel (January 5, 2025). "Future Rangers Stars Gabe Perreault and Drew Fortescue Shine In 4-1 Team USA Semi-Final Victory Over Czechia". Fansided. Retrieved January 6, 2025.
  19. ^ a b c Fischler, Stan (October 14, 2024). "The Rangers Best NCAA Prospect You Never Heard About". The Hockey News. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  20. ^ Otten, Brock; Hall, Dave (September 16, 2024). "McKeen's 2024-25 NHL Yearbook – New York Rangers – Top 15 Prospect Profiles – Organizational Rank #23". McKeen's Hockey. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  21. ^ Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (December 27, 2023). "What to know about the Rangers' prospects". Asbury Park Press. p. B4. Retrieved October 13, 2024 – via newspapers.com.
  22. ^ a b Mercogliano, Vincent Z.; Baugh, Peter (September 15, 2025). "New York Rangers 2025-26 prospect rankings: Counting down Nos. 7-10". The Athletic. Retrieved October 7, 2025.
  23. ^ Fischler, Stan (September 12, 2025). "Who Are The Rangers Current Top Prospects?". The Hockey News. Retrieved October 7, 2025.

Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or The Internet Hockey Database

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