Adam Fox quietly off to fast start with Rangers as early Norris Trophy contender

NHL: New York Rangers at Montreal Canadiens
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Cale Makar is explosive, Quinn Hughes is a speedy dynamo and Adam Fox is surgical — so you can guess which stud defenseman gets overlooked more. That would be the 26-year-old of the New York Rangers.

Surgical is not as sexy as explosive. But it can be equally as effective.

Quietly, Fox’s portfolio is astounding. It’s as impressive as Makar’s and Hughes’ — minus the Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy that Makar won with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022.

Fox won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenseman in 2020-21. He has 316 points in 365 games, already tied for sixth in Rangers history among defensemen in scoring with Reijo Ruotsalainen, and is 13th in career goals (53) after surpassing Ryan McDonagh in 2023-24. His 263 assists are 20 behind Brad Park for fourth all-time among Rangers defensemen.

Each of the past four seasons, Fox has been a top-four vote-getter for the Norris. And he has 70 points or more in three straight seasons.

In 2023-24, Fox finished fourth in Norris voting, just outside of the three finalists, after posting 73 points (NHL career-high 17 goals, 56 assists) in 72 games. Hughes, the lead defenseman for the Vancouver Canucks, won the award last season.

Related: Matt Rempe back with Rangers, OK with AHL assignment: ‘want to grow my game’

Rangers’ Adam Fox again one of NHL’s top defensemen this season

NHL: Detroit Red Wings at New York Rangers
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Fox is off to another strong start this season, if not in the flashy style that has Makar the darling of hockey highlight shows. The Rangers’ top defenseman has eight assists in eight games, including two three-point games. He’s tied for fifth among NHL defensemen in assists and tied for sixth in points — but just three out of third place.

Makar picked up another point Monday and leads all defensemen with 17 points (three goals, 14 assists). That’s second among all NHL skaters, trailing only Vegas Golden Knights forward Mark Stone (18 points; five goals, 13 assists).

Hughes scored a goal Monday and is tied with Fox at eight points (two goals, six assists).

Other defensemen are off to solid starts, too. But, really, Fox, Makar, and Hughes — and Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators — are on another level.

Fox is quietly thriving — and he’s doing so without his usual defense partner, Ryan Lindgren. Dating back to their U.S. National Team days together, Fox and Lindgren have been a solid pair. But when Lindgren went down with a jaw injury in the preseason and missed the first five games of the season, K’Andre Miller stepped into his usual spot to the left of Fox. The Miller-Fox pair has remained intact even after Lindgren’s return.

It hasn’t slowed down the Blueshirts, who are 6-1-1 to start the 2024-25 championship-or-bust season. The move may have energized a defensive core that needed a jolt. It gives the Rangers a dynamic top pairing and should elevate the games of Miller and Fox, New York’s two best d-men.

In Colorado, Makar is paired by the Avalanche with Devon Toews. Makar benefits greatly by skating with such a talented partner. Toews is overshadowed by his partner, but he can also skate like the wind, score at will — and defend like a franchise defenseman. 

The Canucks pair Hughes with Filip Hronek, a two-way defender who finished with 48 points in 2023-24 playing alongside their young captain.

Miller gives Fox more of a Toews or Hronek complement than Lindgren did, though the Lindgren-Fox pairing certainly has had plenty of success. It’s not like Fox is bogged down playing with Lindgren.

But this just may be the medicine the Rangers need to heal their defense after a lackluster showing in the 2024 Eastern Conference Final. 

Fox and Miller have combined for 157 chances and surrendered 92 in 117 minutes and eight games together at 5v5. They have been on the ice for six goals and four goals against. In terms of advanced stats, through eight games (minimum 75:00 TOI), Miller and Fox have recorded xGF – 9.43 (1st), xGoalsFor – 10.3 (1st), HDCF – 43 (1st), xGoals% – 70.1 (2nd) and xGF% – 68.91 (3rd) (Natural Stat Trick and Money Puck.com). 

Hughes and Hronek are also off to a hot start, only allowing two goals against and generating 153 chances for and 88 chances against in eight games in 116:46 TOI.

Makar and Toews have been on the ice for 89 chances for and 82 against, and four goals and four goals against. The Avalanche have been shorthanded early without three injured forwards — Jonathan Drouin, Gabriel Landeskog and Artturi Lehkonen — as well as suspended forward Valeri Nichushkin, to support Nathan MacKinnon on offense, so that should be taken into account. 

Stats also reveal that Makar without MacKinnon on the ice takes a big hit in numbers. In the last two seasons, 47 percent of his points were scored on the power play and 79 percent while paired with either MacKinnon or Mikko Rantanen. 

The Fox-Miller pairing is right in the mix of the best all-around defensive pairings in the NHL. It’s not to say that Lindgren ever detracted from Fox’s play. That duo had a yin-yang balance; one player with offensive gifts, the other with relentless grit. 

The pairing change may help Fox earn a fifth nomination for the Norris Trophy. Although 74 games remain, Fox is making a quiet early case in the race to be named the NHL’s best defenseman. 

Matthew Mugno is a multi-media professional who has previously covered the New York Rangers for The Hockey News and... More about Matthew Mugno

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