Adam Fox, the New York Rangers’ top defenseman, is an expert at making people miss.
In fact he once made me miss without even getting on the ice with me.
Spring of 2018
I’m a first-year analyst with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
I’m tasked with studying the Calgary Flames’ defensive prospects to gauge a potential trade.
I know that CGY is deep on high-end D prospects: Rasmus Andersson, Oliver Kylington, Juuso Valimaki and Fox. There are rumors that even top-pair stalwart Dougie Hamilton is available.
I spend the following week cutting shifts (an arduous task now made incredibly easy by inStat), annotating clips and tracking microstats:
Hamilton (NHL) is a dominant shooter and puck carrier in the NHL, but I find him a bit tentative on DZ retrievals. It’s his D partner Mark Giordano who does most of the heavy lifting on breakouts.
Andersson (AHL) is CGY’s most pro-ready prospect. He makes up for a lack of straight-line speed with great lateral quickness and aggressive reads.
Kylington (AHL), who is less of a fit for TOR because he is left-handed, shows flashes of brilliance offensively but is unreliable in his own zone and easy to knock off the puck.
Valimaki (WHL) is cold as ice when beating F1 on retrievals. I really like his blend of size and skill.
Fox is my least-favorite candidate.
I’m eminently aware of his history of excellent production with the NTDP and at Harvard. But I doubt his ability to translate his skillset to the professional ranks.
Like Andersson, Fox’s straight-line speed leaves to be desired. But Fox plays in a significantly weaker league (NCAA D1) and does not show Andersson’s high-end footwork (dynamic posture on pivots, full extension on crossovers & surfing to deny entries)
Unlike Hamilton, Fox isn’t a high-end mid-range shooter.
Unlike Valimaki, Fox isn’t adept at beating F1 on breakouts and would rather wait for help than attack the middle with speed when the opposing team is set up in a NZ trap.
Watching Fox, I see a lot of this:
NYR23 Fox gets a puck deep in his zone.
WSH set up their NZ trap.
Fox just waits.
Eventually he skates out but simply makes the puck someone else’s problem
“Not projectable,” I conclude in my report.
Fall of 2019
I’m a first-year assistant coach with the Toronto Marlies.
I stand next to the glass and spectate as Fox thrives alongside other NYR prospects at the Traverse City rookie tournament.
I realize I’ve made a grave mistake. Fox is one of the best I’ve ever seen at sucking in pressure, then making a five or 10-foot play to open space.
Fox oozes confidence.
Against NCAA D1 competition, opposing players fall back and make Fox look less-than-dynamic. But the aspiring pros at the rookie tournament charge at Fox, allowing the shifty D-man to send them the wrong way with a stick, head or even eye fake.
Like an NHL21 pro facing off against an average online player, the matchup is anything but fair as soon as the defenseman shoulder-checks and creates a mental image of the rink. Finding the right solution comes easily.
Fox’s favorable mind gap, which I failed to appreciate the previous year, is perhaps the most translatable hockey skill of all. This elite ability to identify threats and opportunities is the source of Fox’s powers and makes him one of the best Ds in the NHL.
Skill 1: DZ Reverse
Fox is a bit of a throwback on breakouts.
When retrieving pucks under pressure, rather than wheeling the puck out of danger like a Cale Makar or a Quinn Hughes, Fox prefers to use an old-school reverse play to his partner.
NYR23 doesn’t believe he can beat F1 with his feet, so he sucks him in, cuts back, makes F2 reach, then capitalizes on the 1v2 by reversing to the other NYR D.
The reverse is not a dynamic play, nor is it a particularly difficult one. But it hinges on Fox’s ability to draw in both F1 and F2, something that not all players have the requisite poise for.
Aside from poise, the other success factor on a reverse play is the passer’s ability to gain body position.
NYR23 sees the hit coming and positions his body to create a seal. By putting himself between the puck and the forechecker, then leaving just enough space to roll off contact, Fox is able to make the short reverse to his partner and be in a good position for the next play.
In a possession-based game, it’s all about the next play.
Fox’s propensity for reverses sets him up to sprint the weak-side, catch up to the puck and receive a second puck in sequence.
NYR23 shoulder-checks to take in information, beats F1 with a reverse, then sprints the dot lane on the right flank. He arrives just in time to be an option on NYR10’s middle entry.
Read Part 2
A behind-the-scenes look at pro hockey
After leaving a coaching position in professional hockey 10 months ago, the first thing I want to do is to write an ebook.
Hockey Tactics 2020 is the ebook I had always wanted to write.
It distills my NHL and AHL experience into 120 pages.
It tells the story of what makes players and teams good.
Hockey Tactics: Retrospective is the ebook I had always wanted to read.
Nine-year-old me never came across a hockey book which combined historical story-telling, detailed diagrams and in-depth analysis.
So 31-year-old me decided to write it for myself and others.
Is this what you’ve always wanted to read as well?