This stretch is all about an introduction for Drew Fortescue. All about a chance — seven games as of now, 10 if he plays in the Rangers’ final three games — to flash his potential and gather experience for everything that follows in his career.
The Blueshirts’ 5-3 loss to the Sabres on Wednesday captured both of those layers for Fortescue, their third-round pick in 2023 who inked his entry-level deal after his Boston College season ended and burned his first year.
He collected a Buffalo turnover and hit Alexis Lafrenière in stride to pick up an assist that served as his second career point, and he also encountered the challenge of playing a Sabres team that has “a lot of size” in addition to being skilled, Mike Sullivan said — and that’s something Fortescue will continue to face during the final three games against the Stars, Panthers and Lightning.
“We’re gonna play some teams coming up that have a lot of size,” Sullivan said after Wednesday’s game, the Rangers’ final one at the Garden, “and I think defensively, that presents a challenge for a young player — just strength-wise, box-outs, things at the net, things of that nature. … On the defending side, we’re continuing to work with him with just some of the nuances and the details. “But I think the biggest challenge is — not just with Drew, but young players in general — is just the speed of the game and the size and the strength of the players. But we’ve really liked what we’ve seen from Drew so far.”
Fortescue focused on getting stronger during his third and final season with the Eagles, too. He’d talked with the Rangers front office about taking a patient approach to turning pro, about opting for one final year of college before bolting for the Rangers, and he admitted to reporters in his first press conference after signing that he still has “a long way to go there” with his strength.
But the point of burning the first year of a three-year deal is to collect those experiences going into the summer. In six games, he has delivered six hits and blocked six shots while finishing with a plus-five.
Next, Fortescue — who has skated on the second defensive pairing alongside Braden Schneider recently — will get a chance to face a Stars team that has already clinched a playoff spot, a Panthers team eliminated from postseason contention but has won the past two Stanley Cups and a Lightning group filled with plenty of veterans who keyed their run to consecutive Stanley Cup titles and three straight appearances in the Final earlier this decade.
Fortescue’s assists have served as tangible signs of his skill set already translating to the new level, too.
“Just so many things that we like about Drew’s game that we’re excited about,” Sullivan said Wednesday. “The pass he makes on [Lafrenière’s] goal is an example of it. He sees it pretty good. He can pass the puck.”
Lafrenière’s pair of goals Wednesday turned the loss into his third multi-goal game of the year, and with 24 goals — which ranks second on the Rangers — this season, he sits just four away from matching his career best of 28 from 2023-24.
He’s also two points away from tying his career high for points (57).
