The 1st Ohio Battery summer prospect series continues with our #11 best prospect in the Blue Jackets organization, forward Maxime Fortier.
Reason for Ranking
As you have seen multiple times on our list, Dan and I seem to be in a fair amount of agreement on the prospects while Paul has a more polarizing list overall.
Fortier was ranked 14th by myself, 16th by Dan and Paul had him as his fifth-ranked prospect.
The clock is already beginning to run on Fortier. He is a solid forward with the point pedigree to back it up. It remains to be seen how he will do in the AHL whereas a smaller player he may not be able to transition as easily. Potential wise he lands right in the middle for most. He played on a varying level of Moosehead teams and it isn't immediately clear what was team-based and what is skill based on his part.
NHL Projection
Bottom-six forward.
Fortier has a lot of good skills. Compared to other players he has a better toolkit to draw from it makes his free agent signing all the more perplexing. He scores and he goes to the tough area to get the pucks.
He was an above a point per game player for three straight seasons and while the Mooseheads have been inconsistent, Fortier has been the opposite. If you're like Paul and believe that he has more room to grow, you could potentially view him as a player a step below Abramov but in a similar sphere.
Best Case Scenario
Fortier becomes a middle-six mainstay.
That happens if he relies on his skill set and doesn't try to be something that he isn't. The Blue Jackets have taken different players and put them into their system with a lot of success because none of them are the same.
Fortier doesn't need to be Cam Atkinson and he doesn't need to be Josh Anderson. He can just continue to score and be an offensive dynamo, that will allow him to move up the rankings.
Doing it in the AHL will ensure that he becomes an NHLer and make the next step. This season should give a good indication of where his pathway is headed.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Fortier like Alex Debrincat and others have a lot of positive traits to their game that translate to the modern NHL. Seeing that he has a lot of flair, imagination and scoring touch means that he really doesn't need to work on that side of his game too much. It is steady as she goes there and for a Cleveland Monsters group that needs scoring, he will help.
Being small-ish, he will get knocked for his defensive prowess and that may be a legitimate knock but given his skating ability and speed, making up for those deficiencies should be easy.
There is a lot to like about Fortier.
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