TAMPA, Fla. — They don’t have quarterbacks or stage guards in hockey.
Not beneath all those names, in any case.
But that is exactly what Adam Fox is for the Rangers.
He’s listed as a defenseman on the roster, but the 24-year-old Very long Island indigenous, who wears No. 23 on his blue sweater, is the team’s quarterback and place guard wrapped in 1 fantastic, team-MVP package deal.
From afar, previous Rangers playoff hero Stefan Matteau has watched Fox intently and is reminded of yet another previous excellent defenseman and teammate on the Rangers’ 1994 Stanley Cup championship staff: Brian Leetch.
“My God … Fox appears so nonchalant on the ice it appears to be like it’s a choose-up activity for him,’’ Matteau explained to The Put up by phone on Saturday. “It’s just like Leetch applied to do, and [Sergei] Zubov. They would slow down the match to their have pace and the high-quality of the plays would be outstanding.
“You realized Fox was heading to be outmuscled in the online games in the corners towards Carolina [in the last series], but he modified his video game by outsmarting everyone. And the passes that he tends to make above and more than and in excess of are just unbelievable. It is difficult to defend.
“The strategy is to hit him. Tampa Bay is aware it has to be physical on Fox, but they cannot drive him off his match, because he’s so sensible he avoids all individuals hits and can make those fantastic passes.’’
Fox is putting up Leetch-like figures on offense. In 16 playoff online games entering the Sport 3 showdown Sunday with the Lightning at Amalie Arena, Fox is tied with center Mika Zibanejad for the Rangers’ direct with 25 details — five ambitions and 17 helps.
It was his cross-ice sliding go to Kaapo Kakko late in the initially period of Match 2 on Friday evening at the Yard that made a 2-1 Rangers lead they hardly ever relinquished en route to a 3-2 gain and a 2- sequence guide.
Leetch, in the Rangers’ 1994 Cup-profitable run, led the league with 34 playoff details and gained the Conn Smythe Trophy. Fox is getting that sort of postseason.
“He’s played fantastic,’’ Rangers mentor Gerard Gallant explained. “He moves the puck so nicely — in both equally zones, the D-zone and the offensive zone. He’s genuinely the leader of our staff and has manufactured some good performs and performs huge minutes for us just about every night time.’’
Appears just like a quarterback or a place guard — or the two.
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