Rangers coach impressed with rookie: ‘he plays smart hockey’
Mike Sullivan said that he didn’t know too much about Drew Fortescue before the rookie defenseman joined the New York Rangers two weeks ago, following his junior season at Boston College. But the Rangers coach is very much impressed with what he’s seen so far from the 20-year-old New York native. And it’s not necessarily the numbers jumping off the page at the veteran coach.
It’s what he sees with his eyes when watching how Fortescue fits into the NHL game. “He doesn’t just play safe hockey, he plays smart hockey. He doesn’t play reckless hockey.
There’s a difference between those three,” Sullivan explained after practice Friday . “I like the fact that he’s trying to play smart hockey. He’s not just trying to play safe hockey.
” A big part of that is the calm he exudes with the puck, particularly in his own end of the ice. There really haven’t been glaring mistakes made by Fortescue in his first four games, mostly paired at even strength with Braden Schneider . “I am really impressed with his puck poise, his vision,” Sullivan said.
“He keeps it simple, but he’s not just an off-the-glass-and-out guy. He’s looking to go tape-to-tape. He has the composure and confidence to find, say, the middle play on a breakout.