New York Rangers defenseman Adam Fox has been named as one of the NHL players who can request a trade during the 2026-27 season. This was reported by the Bleacher Report projection recently.

The speculation comes in right after a disappointing 2025-26 campaign.  The Rangers finished last in the Eastern Conference, which was a heavy setback from their 2023-24 Presidents' Trophy-winning season. 

Adam Fox, the 2021 Norris Trophy winner and the anchor of New York's blue line, has given very noncommittal answers about his long-term future with the team. 

In February, when he was asked directly about his commitment to the Rangers, Fox said he was only focused on the season and that questions about his future were left for the offseason. 

"For me, it was just, we're still in a unique situation," Fox said as per Heavy. "Not many people have been through a retool letter and kind of what that means, so I think that's kind of where the figuring out stuff was from.”

“It was never really about belief in the guys. It was just kind of a direction and where it's going. I think that's where I was at. But obviously, there have been some promising signs of the possibilities of the kind of team we can be, " he adds later.

Fox did notice and talk about the uncertainty about the team's direction, but also pointed to signs of improvement regarding their results, rather than holding onto a decision to leave. 

Fox is signed till the 2028-29 season with a $9.5 million AVV, and he also carries a full no-movement clause. So any trade would require his approval. 

Rangers Navigate A Difficult Rebuild

Fox's situation comes after going through a rough season for the Rangers. They missed the playoffs and were the NHL's worst team on home ice. That includes several lopsided shutout losses. 

According to the article from Heavy, the General Manager, Chris Drury, wrote a letter to fans during this difficult time, warning of hard decisions ahead. That includes trading Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings, and later sending Vincent Trocheck to the Utah Mammoth after the season ended.

The Rangers have acquired forward Pavel Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights and signed him to a multi-year extension, along with defenseman Sean Durzi as part of the same trade. 

They also acquired goaltender Joonas Korpisalo from the Boston Bruins to back up Igor Shesterkin after Jonathan Quick's retirement. With these moves, Fox is convinced that the team is heading in the right direction, moving into next season.

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Written by

Aadhya Nalla

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi