Adam Fox is one of the most dynamic young defensemen in the NHL. Spencer Loane breaks down his game to find out why he's thriving.

Adam Fox was drafted 66th overall by the Calgary Flames in the 2016 NHL Draft. Concerns around Fox’s size, his offensive numbers being boosted by having good teammates with the USNTDP, and a “lack” of defensive play as an offensive-minded defenseman all were in question in regards to how he would translate to the next level. Instead, the adjustment to the collegiate level was quite smooth for Fox. He finished his freshman season at Harvard with 40 points (6G, 34A) in just 35 games, topping all defensemen on his team in scoring and ranking 4th in scoring on his team as well.

Rumors started to swirl around Fox potentially not signing with the Flames early on in his time with Harvard when he began to produce. Fox determined not to sign with the Flames and ended up being shipped to Carolina in the massive Dougie Hamilton trade that took place on the 2018 NHL Draft floor.

There was no risk involved for Carolina by acquiring Fox as he could sign and be a part of the stacked blueline they had, or they could ship him away to another team and get some future assets in return. After his dominant junior season with Harvard in 2018–19 where he was in contention to win the Hobey Baker Award alongside Cale Makar (COL), the latter ended up happening.

On April 30th, 2019, the New York Rangers acquired Adam Fox from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for two 2019 2nd-round picks (one of which was a conditional 3rd at the time). This gave Fox the opportunity to play for the team he grew up rooting for in his hometown back in Jericho, New York, and he has been fantastic in the Big Apple.

Fox finished his rookie season in the NHL with 42 points (8G, 34A) in 70 games and lived up to the hype surrounding him after he was traded to New York. There was a bit of an adjustment period for Fox as the pace of the NHL certainly caught up to him naturally, but it was his hockey sense and poised play with the puck that allowed him to adjust fairly quickly to the league.

Hockey IQ

Fox is unique in the sense that he doesn’t have the skating of defensemen like Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes, or even Miro Heiskanen, but instead he makes up for that with his elite brain. He also isn’t afraid to be hesitant with the puck either. Some players look to receive the puck and quickly make a play when an opportunity presents itself, but Fox prefers to hesitate in order for the RIGHT play to open up for his teammates.

It’s his ability to look through one of his last available options and still find a way to make a play happen. It allows his teammates to play with enough space with the puck rather than him looking to move the puck quickly and potentially make an errant play. That’s why I believe we rarely see Fox make a mistake with the puck and why he is so consistent. Every time I watch Fox under pressure, I’m confident enough thinking he’ll come away with the puck somehow, no matter how tight the circumstances. Because that is what he is able to do best. That’s not something that most defenders in the league have the ability to do and have the patience for.

Fox is almost always a step ahead of the play on the ice and knows what he wants to do with the puck before he has it. It’s funny, because it almost looks as if the game quite literally slows down in real time when Fox has the puck. Part of that has to do with his skating since he isn’t pushing the pace as much, but at the same time he leverages his poise to do that on a consistent basis.

Fox also does a superb job of utilizing deception and manipulation when he has the puck and confuses his opponents a lot of the time while doing so. All it really takes is for Fox to deliver a little head or shoulder fake, and even sometimes just holding onto the puck for extended time periods, and he can get opponents to scramble and move the opposite way. It’s something he does on a regular basis in pretty much every facet of the game, but something he does all the time walking the blue line in the offensive zone and on the power play. He does it extremely well to allow for shooting lanes to be opened up and for plays to be made as well.

Let’s take a look at some video examples of what Fox is capable of doing while he is on the ice.

The Film

This is Adam Fox at his best in terms of smarts right here. With the NYR’s two-man drop system on the power play, he can feed the puck either through the diagonal seam on the weak side or just pass the puck straight back on the strong side. Fox looks for Zibanejad for a diagonal pass, realizes it isn’t there, then holds onto the puck and waits for Zibanejad to be an option. The elite awareness of Fox to recognize that a turnover was basically bound to happen if he initially made that pass and having the poise to wait and find a better option is remarkable.

Fox lures the forechecker closer to him, maintains possession with his head up while moving backwards, and then feeds Zibanejad for a controlled zone entry. Amazing work from Fox here.

Here’s another very subtle play from Fox here. This isn’t necessarily something he’ll do regularly, but I saw it and had to clip it. He recognizes that Ristolainen is trying to close in on NYR’s strong side forward, intentionally tangles him & his stick up, and forces Ristolainen off balance to create separation. Fox sneakily activates as a 4th forward and somehow got behind everyone here, but continued his route to the net, picks up a rebound, and puts the puck in the net. That all started with his play to intentionally throw off Ristolainen and get him out of position to allow for space to open up for him and his teammates.

Sneaky, Sneaky

Also, it’s amazing how Fox can just activate from the point and can basically go unnoticeable and blend in with the rest of the play, sometimes I don’t even see him doing it either. He’s so sneaky with how he activates from the point and isn’t afraid at all to take risks offensively without the puck as well.

Fox is a master of manipulation and deception. Andreas Johnsson realizes there’s an opportunity to disrupt the play here with Fox in the high corner of the offensive zone. Fox sees him coming, but once again takes advantage of the space and waits to make a play. Johnsson comes in, but Fox outmaneuvers him and hooks a pass over to Zibanejad, with Johnsson way out of position now.

About 15 seconds or so into the clip now, Fox utilizes his poise once again. He draws Johnsson in again while circling back to the point, pivots, handles the puck to his side to create space, and makes a short-area pass over to Zibanejad.

Here again, Fox shows off his mastery of deception and manipulation once again. He does an excellent job of angling his stick and head in a way that fools the opposition and goaltender into thinking he is going to shoot. Instead, Fox already knows he has Panarin on the weak side when he has the puck.

Fox gets the puck, waits for the passing lane to clearly open up by manipulating the opposition, and then feeds Panarin cross-seam who wires home a one-timer. That’s a tough read for the goaltender to make since Fox forced him to move all the way to his left by getting him to think he would shoot, and he wasn’t able to get over in time to make a save obviously.

Here’s some great examples of Fox’s breakouts and his ability to outmaneuver forecheckers with ease. His deception, confidence, ability to control the puck with his head up, and his mobility are all a treat to watch when he’s under pressure in these circumstances. These clips all show that, and they also show how much he wants to make the right play consistently. If he doesn’t see a play he likes, he’ll sometimes circle back or wait to make sure the right option opens up. He can bait you and get you moving one way, but instead moves the puck or finds space in the opposite way.

Good Habits

Fox also brings good habits and makes sure to check his shoulders so he knows how much time and space he has on a retrieval. It’s one of his best habits before retrieving a puck and making a play so that he can identify where pressure is coming from. He’ll do the same when he has the puck as well, but it’s vital for him to be able to know what he needs to do with the puck first when retrieving by checking both of his shoulders.

Here’s another excellent example of Adam Fox’s poise with the puck on his stick. Adam also makes an excellent point in this tweet. For the star players in today’s game, the game moves extremely slow for them since they’re able to process the play so quickly and slow the game down through leverage. They’re the ones dictating the play. Players who have less hockey sense on the other hand, the game is moving at a rapid pace for them since they don’t have the cognitive ability to process the play quickly like the stars do.

So for Fox here, for what may seem like a quickly moving play to us, things on the ice are actually moving slowly for him. It’s also another example of Fox’s ability to maintain composure with the puck and finding a way to make the right play. He draws in that Edmonton forward to him, knows he doesn’t have a direct option, waits, and finally makes a pass along the strong side wall with the Edmonton defender moving back into the box formation.

There’s a quiet, subtle confidence about Fox that just makes him so much fun to watch offensively. Whether it’s his poise, his consistency, elite level playmaking, or his ability to activate within the offensive zone, Fox knows what his capabilities are and shows them every time he is on the ice. Having that confidence allows him to not only make higher-level plays, but take bigger risks with the puck on his stick. As a transporter, he takes risks by using his poise to wait to the last second to make a play, or by carrying through on entries himself.

Patience With the Puck

He isn’t afraid to make things happen offensively by himself. He loves to involve himself in the play and as these highlights show, and he’s confident enough in himself to make a difference for his team.

The skillset that Fox has is something that is extremely unique, as it bonds an old-school rover with a modern-day offensive defenseman who is elite in every facet and brings exceptional patience with the puck to go along with that. It makes for a player who isn’t your traditional offensive defenseman nowadays which is unique to watch.

A majority of these tactics that Fox uses in his game are modern-day defensive tactics. He is able to forward gap, angle, surf, and shut down opponents not using his skating, but his hockey sense. He isn’t the most fluid skater, nor does he need to be, but since he has elite level processing speed, it balances those components out in his game.

He does an excellent job incorporating shoulder checking and manipulation, in order to put defenders on his back. Here in this highlight reel, on the first retrieval, he problem-solves F1 and puts him on his back. Fox first shoulder checks to read pressure and spacing, and then pivots to the near corner to find space. He turns, takes his ice, and finds a striding Zibanejad through the middle lane. A quick retrieval, to a quick outlet, a quick transition, which leads to a quick goal for the Rangers here.

Many of these examples also show Fox’s cognitive ability in 1v1 situations. He prefers to not chase defenders, which is what some defenders would do, and instead relies on man-on-man tracking. He does an excellent job tracking opponents, and using his stick patiently to break up the play. He keeps control of his stick, and uses it as a guide to keep opponents on the perimeter. Very smart, and in tandem with his anticipation, he can shut plays down fast.

Adam Fox is one of the most dynamic young defensemen in today’s NHL, and will be a cornerstone of a high-level group that the Rangers are formulating. With the current success of the Rangers, and the likelihood of them improving in the future, it will be very exciting to see how Fox improves over the course of his career.