The New York Rangers have a star No. 1 defenseman in Adam Fox. However, his greatness is being taken for granted by many within the sport, perhaps because of how he makes the difficult seem effortless.
NHL Network released its annual Top-20 defensemen rankings ahead of the 2024-25 season this week. They listed Fox as the eighth-best defenseman, a drop off of six spots from his No. 2 ranking a year ago.
Is he only the eighth-best defenseman in the NHL? The answer is no. This feels more like a decision to get people talking rather than an actual assessment. More on that later.
Are there seven better NHL defensemen than Fox? That answer is also No. If you look at the players listed immediately ahead of him, Charlie McAvoy and Gustav Forsling, Fox is better than each. Then go to the top five, outside of Cale Makar (No. 1) and Quinn Hughes (No. 2), you can make the case that Fox is better than Miro Heiskanen, Roman Josi, and Victor Hedman.
So, for a player who has consistently been in the top five in Norris Trophy voting since entering the NHL, Fox should be recognized as one of the top three defensemen in the League. Just because he is not flashy like the other players does not mean he isn’t as effective. Fox’s greatness is being taken for granted.
Adam Fox’s greatness with Rangers being taken for granted outside of Big Apple
Fox plays in one of the biggest hockey markets in the world, and if he were more flashy or a forward putting up the numbers he is, people would be talking more about him. Fox drives the offense for the Rangers from the back end. Similar to Makar in Colorado and Hughes in Vancouver. Just not as flashy.
Fox finished sixth among defensemen with 73 points (17 goals, 56 assists) in 72 games last season and was tied for fourth with 33 power-play points while averaging 23:27 of ice time per game. The 26-year-old led Rangers defensemen with 137 shots on goal and five game-winning goals, was second on the team with a plus-21 rating behind Ryan Lindgren (plus-22) and third with 123 blocked shots. Fox finished fourth in Norris voting last season and is a two-time finalist, having won the award in 2020-21.
Despite missing 10 games with a knee injury last season, Fox was still a point-per-game player, recording those 73 points in 72 games. Had he stayed healthy, those numbers project to 83 points in 82 games while playing top-pair minutes for the Rangers.
Some may criticize his defensive game; however, since 2020, he leads all NHL defensemen with 616 points + takeaways. That is ahead of his peers of Makar and Hughes.
So when NHL Network makes statements as listed below, with a picture of the guy they caused the controversy with, you have to wonder if this list was for clicks or to generate talk.
When you think of the top defensemen in the League, most begin with Makar, Fox, and Hughes in no particular order. Then, the rest fall into line. Even though Fox was hurt last season, he was still sixth in scoring for defensemen. What exactly did he do to fall six spots in one year?
His vision and HockeyIQ are among the best in the League. He makes the games look so effortless. However, as tennis legend Roger Federer said, there is no such thing as effortless. There’s plenty of effort there, Fox is just so smooth, it appears otherwise. The way he handles the puck and skates. There is a reason why the Rangers offense runs through Fox, and why he’s the key on the back end.
So, before judging everything on offensive numbers like we do with the Norris Trophy, let’s look at a defenseman’s overall game. Fox’s game was taken for granted here, and he needs to be recognized more for all he does.
