WOLF PACK UNLEASHED: JACKSON DORRINGTON

WOLF PACK UNLEASHED: JACKSON DORRINGTON

Aug 14, 2025

HARTFORD, CT – Jackson Dorrington’s 2024-25 season can only be described in one word – busy. The North Reading, MA, native completed his collegiate career, turned pro, faced off against his brother for the first time, and experienced being traded. It was a whirlwind year for Dorrington that gives him a unique perspective heading into his rookie season.

Dorrington, a sixth round pick by the Vancouver Canucks in 2022, appeared in 37 games with Northeastern University as a junior during the 2024-25 season. He set career high marks in assists with 13 and points with 15 (2 g, 13 a), helping the Huskies to a strong run in the Hockey East Playoffs.

During the season, on Jan. 31, Dorrington was part of a trade between the Canucks and the New York Rangers. Dorrington, fellow defenseman Erik Brännström, and forward J.T. Miller went to New York in exchange for defenseman Victor Mancini, forward Filip Chytil, and the club’s first round selection in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.

To cap it all off, Dorrington signed his entry-level contract with the Rangers shortly after his collegiate season ended. He then inked an amateur tryout agreement with the Hartford Wolf Pack and skated in nine games with the club.

It was a small sample size, but Dorrington feels like he learned a lot during his time in the capital of Connecticut.

“There’s definitely some ups and downs, but I think it was good to get the experience and deal with some adversity,” he said. “Now I’m heading into the summer kind of knowing what I need to do to get better for next season.”

The nine game taste of professional hockey allowed Dorrington to see just how different it is from the NCAA level. The game is faster, the players are bigger and stronger, and there is much less time to think decisions through with the puck.

These are all things Dorrington is now keenly aware of.

“It’s older, harder, and faster than college and I’m going to have to get bigger, stronger, and faster this summer,” he said when about specifically about what he has learned. “For me, just knowing the speed and how the game is played at this level is valuable going into the offseason ahead of my rookie year.”

With all that in mind, Dorrington didn’t shy away from the areas he is focused on working on over the summer.

“Definitely my skating, my strength, and then obviously my stick skills,” he added. “Honestly, mostly everything, but definitely want to focus on my skating this summer.”

The lessons Dorrington learned were not just on the ice. He began to learn how to be a pro off the ice as well. The teacher of those lessons? Wolf Pack captain Casey Fitzgerald.

The two share a hometown (North Reading, MA) and both played college hockey in the Boston area. Now, they are teammates.

Dorrington was like a sponge around the captain, learning as much as he could off the ice and on the ice, where the two skated as a defense pairing for a majority of Dorrington’s pro games.

“He handles himself so well,” Dorrington said of Fitzgerald. “I’ve looked up to him for a while, we are from the same town, so he’s been a role model for me. Him just helping me out, any questions I have, he’s taught me a lot so playing with him was awesome.”

Lessons weren’t the only thing Dorrington experienced in his nine games with the Wolf Pack. Three of those games came against the Bridgeport Islanders, who his brother Max Dorrington plays for.

“It was really weird,” he said of the experience of playing against his brother, while laughing. “I popped him once, it felt good, but also I kind of felt bad at the same time. We’ve been battling all our lives and it was just kind of pretty cool to play against him in the pros.”

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ABOUT THE HARTFORD WOLF PACK: The Hartford Wolf Pack has been a premier franchise in the American Hockey League since the team’s inception in 1997. The Wolf Pack are the top player-development affiliate of the NHL's New York Rangers and play at PeoplesBank Arena. The Wolf Pack has been home to some of the Rangers newest faces including Igor Shesterkin, Will Cuylle, and Matt Rempe. Follow the Wolf Pack on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Flickr, and TikTok.  

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