The Rangers held a full scrimmage today, day 3 of training camp. In that scrimmage, while all three goalies played well, one stood out. Adam Fox was not one of the three finalists for the Calder Trophy, but that does not distract in any way from how fine of a year he had.
Vince Mercogliano had a good summary of the practice and scrimmage. On the netminders, coach David Quinn said all three goalies looked good in the scrimmage, but he thought Igor, who played all 40 minutes, had a great day today. Quinn added that Henrik Lundqvist and Alexandar Georgiev - each of whom played a period - also looked good, Granted, there is still a long way until real game action, but Shesterkin may be in the pole position and lead at this moment.
The scrimmage was a bit choppy early on but improved as action continued. Mercogliano noted that Libor Hajek was solid and K'Andre Miller did not look out of place. Look for several more of these games, allowing players to work out the rust and get in game shape prior to the exhibition and play-in games.
Today's #NYR camp takeaways file is in:
— Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) July 15, 2020
- Reaction to Adam Fox's Calder snub
- Recap of today's full-squad scrimmage
- Impressions of young D-men
- Igor solidifies his lead in the starting goal sweepstakes
STORY âž¡ï¸ https://t.co/MVxQALsfVH@NYRangerFanclub @WeBleedBlueNYC
Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes and Dominik Kubalik are the three finalists. The first two were no surprise and the vote should be razor thin. Kubalik tallied 30 games and was a deserving candidate. Elvis Merzlikins and Fox both had cases for third, and while we are biased, Kubalik over Fox is not a case for major consternation and criticism.
Larry Brooks summarized nicely how good Fox was and why he succeeded. It's those little plays in his own zone where he is able to steal the puck and/or pivot away from danger. Defensively, he was better than expected and outplayed Maker and Hughes in that regard. His ability to then create the rush is another reason for his success.
Fox grabbed a hold of the opportunity afforded to him with the buyout of Kevin Shattenkirk 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.
For those who want a graphical representation, regardless of how you feel about advance stats, this is a good look:
But I guess he isn't good enough to win the calder huh? pic.twitter.com/BpNhZZOa1K
— Russ of Rivia | #BLM (@russellhartman1) July 15, 2020
Fox was asked about his rookie campaign:
"For me, I just wanted to come in and make an impact. Leaving college, I thought I was ready to make the jump. I think as the season went along, I grew as a player and felt good toward the end of the year for sure." @foxyclean on his 2019-20 evolution: pic.twitter.com/bfkKDCEPUg
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) July 15, 2020
All games in the play-in round to be aired by MSG. Coverage will start with a pregame show 30 minutes before puck drop. Times for the exhibition game against the Isles and first three contests vs. the Hurricanes are:
7/29 7:30pm vs Isles, MSG 8/1 11:30am @ Carolina, MSG 8/3 11:30am @ Carolina, MSG 8/4 7:30pm vs Carolina, MSG
The 8/4 game is at prime time. We await to see what NBC network might air each contest. Times for game 4 and 5, if necessary, to be revealed likely on 8/4 or 8/5.