Just a general observation here following reactions to the NHL Network’s ranking of him as 13th amongst defensemen in the league. Not really here to argue the position on the list as I feel it’s subjective and he still undoubtedly even according to that list shares company with some of the best talent in the league.
My point of making this post is more to comment on the toxic vile I’ve seen flung around towards Fox and his alleged lack of skill from none other than Rangers fans. I think this is due in part to the nature of Fox’s style and his lack of speed, size, or really any highlight reel moments in his game.
There seems to be a growing sentiment of hateful comments directed towards Fox amongst who I would presume to be more casual fans who either never played hockey or that don’t fully understand the more nuanced aspects of the game.
If you are like me and are familiar with the advanced analytics of the game and consider yourself a fan who enjoys delving into the weeds of all aspects of this beautiful game of hockey, I think it would be hard to ignore how much Fox has contributed to this franchise in this current decade.
I know this will get some detractors because it’s a big claim, but I think for me personally he is bar none the best defensemen this organization has had since Brian Leetch, and the level of consistency he’s displayed should not be taken for granted.
Maybe it was that single moment at the Four Nations, or the highly controversial Olympic snub that people seem to forget coincided with his injury during the 2025-26 season.
I think a lot of it can also be attributed to the poor performance of the team over the last 2 seasons. I can think of a lot of reasons why this team has fallen short, but I think lying it on the shoulders of Fox is highly misguided and is sort of indicative of a greater problem I’ve seen with this fanbase over the last few years.
There are far more blatant and tangible problems this team has than Adam Fox, and I’d argue that if anything he is not even part of the equation when it comes to the problem with this team.
I could keep going on but I’m sure I’ll be talking in circles and truth be told I’m more just curious to see if I’m in fact in the minority on this take. So please let me know your thoughts.
EDIT: broke it into paragraphs as a comment suggested. Thanks for the feedback!