Rangers' prospect development camp gets started with practice session

GREENBURGH – Before all the madness of free agency began at noon Tuesday, the Rangers managed to squeeze in a practice session on ice for some of their young players attending their 2025 Prospect Development Camp.

Thirty-two prospects are at the camp, though winger Malcolm Spence, their second-round pick on Saturday, did not participate Tuesday because the team said he was ill. Six of the other seven draft picks from Saturday were on the ice, with only Russian Artyom Gonchar missing. Gabe Perreault, their first-round pick in 2023, and E.J. Emery, their first-rounder in 2024, both were in attendance.

Also in attendance was defenseman Drew Fortescue, their third-round pick in 2023 who did not sign a pro contract after his sophomore season ended at Boston College, as did his college teammate Perreault. Fortescue said his plan as of now is to go back to BC for his junior season and continue to try and work on getting bigger and stronger.

Asked if he didn’t want to sign a contract when Perreault and Ryan Leonard (with the Washington Capitals) did, Fortescue said, “Obviously your goal is to do that. But I think what's best for me and (after) talking to their guys and their player development staff, and just kind of being on the same page as all of them, my goal is to just focus on the year coming up. And then we'll see what happens going forward.’’

There was one other interesting name among the players attending the camp: 20-year-old forward Beanie Richter, a rising junior at Yale and son of former Rangers goaltender Mike Richter. The younger Richter had five goals and six assists in 31 games for Yale this season.

The camp concludes Wednesday.

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.