Icemen Defenseman of the Year returns for a second season in Jacksonville
By: Alex Reed – Jacksonville Icemen
JACKSONVILLE, FL – The Jacksonville Icemen have resigned Brandon Fortunato.
The Icemen are theproud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers and the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack resigned Fortunato, a defenseman for the 2022-2023 season.
Fortunato, 26, returns for a second season with the Icemen where he was the recipient of the team’s Defenseman of the Year award last season. Fortunato collected 25 points in 39 appearances in Jacksonville last season, while also adding five assists in eight playoff games. In addition, he earned AHL call-ups last season with Hartford (3 games) and the Charlotte Checkers (7 games) recording two assists. Fortunato also registered a goal for the Icemen in the 2022 ECHL All-Star Classic last January.
In 2020-21, Fortunato appeared in 13 American Hockey League appearances split between the Belleville Senators and Cleveland Monsters. During the 2019-20 season, the 5-11, 170-pound defenseman recorded 21 points (2g, 19a) in 48 games played with the Florida Everblades (ECHL).
Before turning pro, Fortunato played collegiately at Quinnipiac University where he totaled 36 points in two seasons from 2017-2019. The Albertsons, New York resident also played two seasons at Boston University and registered 40 points.
The following is a list of players that have agreed to terms with the Icemen for the 2022-2023 season:
Goaltender
Charles Williams
Defensemen
Victor Hadfield
Bo Hanson
Brandon Fortunato
Brendan Less
Jacob Panetta
Tim Theocharidis
Forwards
Jake Hamacher
Brendan Harris
Luke Keenan
Luke Lynch
Matt Salhany
Sam Sternschien
Mike Szmatula
The Icemen open the 2022-2023 season at home on October 22 against the Orlando Solar Bears. Full and partial season ticket packages are currently available! Contact the Icemen office at904-602-7825, or visit jacksonvilleicemen.com for more information. #LitesOut
