What makes Rangers prospect Drew Fortescue ‘tremendous shutdown defenseman’
For the past two seasons, Drew Fortescue played in the shadow of top New York Rangers prospect Gabe Perreault.
That doesn’t mean the 20-year-old defenseman failed to impress. On the contrary. Fortescue was a solid regular in the Boston College lineup and helped the United States win consecutive gold medals at the 2024 and 2025 World Junior Championships.
It just so happened that Perreault, a flashy star forward selected in the first round (No. 23 overall) by the Rangers in the 2023 NHL Draft, was Fortescue’s teammate both at BC and Team USA. So, Perreault received much more attention than Fortescue, who was chosen in the third round of the same draft by the Rangers.
However, Fortescue will no longer be the “other” Rangers prospects at Boston College this fall, since Perreault turned pro last spring and is vying for a spot on New York’s opening-night roster. And considering his junior season could be his last in college before signing an entry-level contract in the spring of 2026, you better believe Fortescue will be under some heavy scrutiny this coming season.
But it’s not like Fortescue hasn’t already excelled under the spotlight. Mike Morreale, NHL.com’s draft and prospects expert, points out that one need not look any further than Fortescue’s outstanding play in the past two World Junior tournaments to see what kind of future professional the Rangers have on their hands.
“Some players just have that ability about them to be able to play well on an international stage. Fortescue is right in that mold,” Morreale told Forever Blueshirts on the RINK RAP podcast. “He’s a tremendous shutdown defenseman on the left side, and that was an area that the U.S. needed. And not only is he a shutdown guy, but he’s strong, he’s abrasive in the corners.”
Though high-scoring teammates like Perreault, Ryan Leonard, Cole Hutson and James Hagens received most of the press and adulation for Team USA’s success at the World Juniors, Fortescue was the glue. He played a quiet, steady game for the U.S. throughout each tournament, a fixture in their top-four on defense.
Though he scored a goal and had three assists in seven WJC games in 2024, Fortescue didn’t record a single point in 2025. That didn’t matter at all. He was terrific in his role as shutdown defenseman.
“He was just phenomenal,” Morreale stated. “I remember (assistant executive director of hockey operations for USA Hockey and former Rangers goalie) John Vanbiesbrouck saying Drew was a major, major piece on that team and winning that second gold medal.”
Drew Fortescue not focused on his future with Rangers
Fortescue said at Rangers development camp in July that “it was always the plan” for him to return to BC for his junior year. He and the Rangers organization both see the advantage for him to continue to grow his game, gain high-level NCAA experience, and fill out physically.
The Pearl River, New York, native is listed at 6-foot-2, 180 pounds. Though his game is not predicated solely on physical play, it’d behoove him to continue to get bigger and stronger before making a run at an NHL job in the not-so-distant future.
“Fortescue is one of those guys who knows how to play it physically,” Morreale explained. “It doesn’t always have to be body contact. It can also be how he uses his stick, the gapping, the positioning, and Fortescue has really mastered that at the college level and how how he was able to produce at the World Juniors.”
That’s music to the ears of Chris Drury and Co. because the Rangers could really use someone with Fortescue’s skill set to be a viable and affordable option on the blue line, perhaps as soon as the 2026-27 season.
Assuming newcomer Scott Morrow locks down a third-pair spot on the right side next season, Fortescue could be in play to be his left-side partner in two years.
That left side could feature Vladislav Gavrikov, Braden Schneider (on his off side), Urho Vaakanainen and/or Fortescue in 2026-27. The right side could be Adam Fox, Will Borgen and either Schneider or Morrow.
No doubt, there’s an opportunity waiting for Fortescue. And even further down the road that could be a top-four shutdown pairing with EJ Emery, New York’s first-round pick in 2024, who fits that shutdown right-shot slot on defense.
Fortescue, though, is not thinking that far down the line.
“I think just kind of right now, I’m focused on getting bigger and stronger,” he said. “That’s kind of been my biggest focus going into next year.
“Just continuing to do that, trying to focus on it the best I can and see what happens.”
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