Adam Fox has given the Rangers zero reasons to believe he cannot handle the immense workload he’s been tasked with carrying. In fact, the fourth-year player has proven time and time again that he thrives under such circumstances.
The 24-year-old defenseman, whose 42 points are good for third on the Rangers, logged a game-high 28:11 of ice time and had a hand in the two most important plays in the 4-3 shootout win over the Wild on Tuesday night at the Garden. After sniping one past Minnesota goalie Marc Andre Fleury to tie the game at two-all in the first period, Fox made the move to the net that allowed Filip Chytil to even the score, 3-3, later in the third.
The Rangers don’t get to overtime, let alone the shootout, without Fox’s contributions in that game.
“He’s been great, he’s been excellent,” head coach Gerard Gallant said as he knocked on the table as if not to jinx his No. 1 defenseman. “Points every night, big plays [Tuesday] night to get us back in the hockey game. He’s been everything we want.”
Tuesday marked the 20th time Fox has recorded 25 minutes or more this season, and it’s likely far from the last. Gallant noted the coaching staff monitors his minutes, but pointed out Fox rightfully did not participate in the Rangers’ optional practice on Wednesday at MSG Training Center.
“You see him after the game and he doesn’t even look tired,” the coach said. “He’s used to that routine. … He’s used to those minutes. It’s no different than [the Avalanche’s Cale] Makar and those guys. He manages his minutes well. It doesn’t look like it’s caught up to him at all. We just had a good little Christmas break, and he takes these practices off, maintenance days, I think they’re important.”
After Tuesday’s multi-point performance, his ninth of the season, Fox now has points in five straight games and in 12 of his past 18. He recently became the third defenseman this season to reach the 40-point mark, joining the Sharks’ Erik Karlsson and the Jets’ Josh Morrisey.
“I think it’s just kind of his style,” captain Jacob Trouba told The Post of Fox’s workload. “I’d say he’s a very efficient player. He gets up the ice, he works hard, but he’s pretty efficient in his skating and his stride and everything. That’s what he does. He’s used to playing that, once you kind of get in that groove, you get in a groove. He’s been great for us.”
The Rangers picked up forward Jake Leschyshyn off waivers from Vegas on Wednesday in the wake of Chris Kreider’s upper-body injury, which will sideline the left winger for Thursday’s matchup with the Stars.
Leschyshyn, who played 63 games for the Golden Knights over the past two seasons after the organization selected him in the second round of the 2017 draft, is strictly a center who has a manageable cap hit of $766,667. The 23-year-old is also an option on the penalty kill.
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