#Impressive Rangers rookie Adam Fox left off final Calder Trophy shortlist

That’s all right. Nicklas Lidstrom didn’t win the Calder Trophy, either.

It was a bit of a downer Wednesday when the NHL announced its three finalists for the rookie of the year award and Adam Fox was not among them.

Instead, defensemen Cale Makar of the Avalanche and Quinn Hughes of the Canucks, and winger Dominik Kubalik of the Blackhawks are the three worthy players who are in the running for the award, which has not been won by a Ranger since Brian Leetch took the Calder in 1988-89.

“It’s just people’s opinions, it’s not really up to me to decide, obviously,” Fox said on a Zoom call following Wednesday’s scrimmage. “I’m confident in the way I play, and it’s not for me to decide any individual award, but I was just trying to help the team during the season, and now going into the playoffs is my focus.

“Obviously recognition is nice here and there, but it’s not really what I set out for.”

Thing is, Fox has been recognized by the coaching staff and by his teammates for his work at both ends of the ice. The Rangers acquired his rights from Carolina last April in exchange for a pair of second-rounders then bought out Kevin Shattenkirk in order to create an opportunity for him.

Fox grabbed it and never let go. He played with the poise of a 10-year veteran. He made adjustments as the league adjusted to him. He was quick with his stick and understood how to use it to turn around plays in his own end. He was strong with his body position and was able to elude hits. And of course, he was creative with the puck in all three zones with his vision and the ability to make the quick first pass.

The fact is, the Long Island native — who you may have heard once or twice grew up rooting for the Rangers — never really ever looked like a rookie.

“The thing that really [impressed me] — surprised is probably the wrong word — but how quickly he adapted to defending at this level certainly made the transition a lot easier,” coach David Quinn said. “Everybody knew what his offense was going to be, but when you have a guy of that caliber offensively who can also be a good defender, that makes him a pretty impactful player in his first year.

“Really, there never was a question [about Fox’s readiness] from the get-go. He acclimated quickly, never had trouble defending NHL players and that allowed him to have a pretty impressive first season.”

When COVID-19 hit the pause button on the NHL season on March 12, Fox had evolved into the club’s top-pair right defenseman, with fellow 22-year-old Ryan Lindgren his partner on the left. The matched set played as a pair for Team USA in the 2016 U-18’s, then in both the 2017 and 2018 World Junior tournaments. They then bonded for 56 of the final 60 games on Broadway once Lindgren had been recalled from Hartford.

Quinn is not necessarily doctrinaire regarding matchups, but all things being equal, Fox and Lindgren stand to get the brunt of the assignment against the Candy Canes’ top line, centered by Sebastien Aho with Andrei Svechnikov and Teuvo Teravainen on the wings. The ’Canes, of course, went to the conference finals last season (after missing the tournament each of the nine preceding years), so they have some sort of idea what playoff hockey is about, even if this represents a whole new ballgame.

“Obviously no one has played in a bubble with no fans and playing a tournament into the playoffs, so it’s a unique experience for everyone,” Fox said. “At the same time, we’re a pretty young team, it still is the playoffs and it’s going to be a different type of intensity, so guys with experience definitely could help guys like me during this.”

Fox was impressive during Wednesday’s scrimmage, showing few signs of rust after essentially a four-month break. It could have been last September in Traverse City. It could have been February against the Islanders.

“When the season went on pause and nobody really knew when we were going to be coming back, I took a little time off to kind of recover, it’s a long season there, and then started working out and trying to get back some strength,” No. 23 said. “That was my focus, and so was staying in shape. It was obviously tough to stay in hockey shape without skating, but coming here for the voluntary skates helped me get back into game shape a little more, and with this training camp, it’s a lot more comfortable.”