Adam Fox isn’t buying toughness narrative around Rangers

When Adam Fox, the Rangers’ first Norris Trophy winner since Hall of Famer Brian Leetch in 1997, looks at the young Blueshirts squad, the 23-year-old defenseman sees the abundance of skill and talent that is apparent to everybody else in the NHL.

Though many think that finesse and pretty play — at the expense of grit and tenacity — are all the Rangers have, Fox disagrees.

The Rangers have the right pieces to become playoff contenders, according to Fox, but the players are still learning how to assume their individual roles in order to accomplish that.

“People are going to see a team how they want to,” Fox told The Post in a recent phone interview. “But I think we have guys that play hard and want to win. We have guys that care about winning. Obviously, we’re a younger team, so we’re still learning. We have some older guys who have been through it, they play a playoff type of hockey, and I think we’ll lean on those guys when that time comes.

“I wouldn’t say we’re a weak team — I think people saw how we defended ourselves after [the Tom Wilson incident], a lot of guys stepped up. We definitely have a tough team, we obviously have a lot of skill, but I think guys compete and want to win.”

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Adam Fox
Paul J. Bereswill

The Wilson debacle, in which the notorious Capitals agitator went rogue and rag-dolled star Rangers winger Artemi Panarin into an early offseason on May 3, fed into an already existing narrative that the Rangers weren’t tough. Though the Blueshirts engaged in a retaliatory line brawl the following game, which included Brendan Smith taking on Wilson, the notion that the team severely lacked physicality only grew when team president John Davidson and general manager Jeff Gorton were dismissed that same day, partially because of CEO Jim Dolan’s disappointment in how the team was designed.

It’s a narrative of which the Rangers are well-aware, and one they will be hearing about all summer as they prepare for the 2021-22 season, which is set to begin in October.

“It lights a fire under people and makes the guys on the team just want to work that much harder in the offseason, improve the type of team we have and the type of skill,” Fox said. “Just let that take over and just prove people wrong and show what we can do out there.”

Under new leadership, the Rangers will be looking to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2016-17. Fox said he believes the team took strides this past season, but acknowledged that with such a young team there were some frustrating moments.

What matters, the Jericho, N.Y., native said, is that they went through it together and can utilize their experiences in this upcoming season to take that next step forward.

After dismissing former head coach David Quinn and a majority of his coaching staff four days following the conclusion of the regular season, new president and GM Chris Drury hired a new coach, Gerard Gallant, who Fox said he and his teammates have heard is a “player’s coach” and will “backup the guys on the team.”

Though Drury said during Gallant’s introductory press conference that making the playoffs this upcoming season wasn’t necessarily a “mandate,” it is likely the only way the Rangers can determine if they’re heading in the right direction.

“I definitely think every guy in our locker room is thinking about making the playoffs next year, for sure,” Fox said.

“Nobody likes to have your season end right after the regular season. I think all of us want to make the playoffs and we’re gonna do everything we can to make the playoffs and obviously see where that takes us.”

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