Rangers hope Scott Morrow is 2nd defense prospect acquired from Carolina to thrive in New York
Adam Fox and Scott Morrow have more in common than simply being right-shot defensemen for the New York Rangers.
Each is a gifted puck mover who starred in college and eventually was traded to the Rangers by the Carolina Hurricanes. Their paths to Broadway were a bit different, but the many similarities make for an intriguing comparison.
Fox, who was a Rangers fan while growing up on Long Island, was selected by the Calgary Flames in the third round (No. 66 overall) of the 2016 NHL Draft. He had zero intention of playing for the Flames, so they traded him to the Hurricanes on June 23, 2018. Less than a year later, the ‘Canes traded him to the Rangers.
All of this took place while Fox was still attending Harvard.
Don Waddell, Carolina’s general manager at the time, was told by the defenseman’s camp that he’d sign with the Hurricanes if they traded for him. Waddell pulled the trigger, sending Noah Hanifin and Elias Lindholm to the Flames in a deal that included Dougie Hamilton and Fox’s rights. But things changed quickly.
“About two week later, the agent called and said, ‘We changed our mind. We want to move to the Rangers,'” Waddell, now GM and president of hockey operations with the Columbus Blue Jackets, said on the Cam & Strick Podcast. “So obviously, we traded for him thinking he was coming — and he didn’t.”
Fox returned to Harvard for the 2018-19 season, then was flipped to New York on April 30, 2019 — before he could become an unrestricted free agent as an unsigned college player.
And as Waddell revealed, history nearly repeated itself with Scott Morrow.
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Morrow’s situation was a familiar one for Hurricanes
Just like Fox, Morrow was a top college defenseman with leverage. And just like Fox, the Hurricanes risked losing him for nothing.
“Last year with Morrow … he was going to graduate earlier, unbeknownst to anybody,” Waddell said. “If we didn’t get him signed before Aug. 15 (2024), he would’ve been free.”
Carolina narrowly avoided a repeat. The Hurricanes signed Morrow and he turned in a solid first season as a pro in 2024-25, largely in the American Hockey League — where Fox never played a single game — before playing 14 NHL games.
But the Hurricanes moved Morrow to the Rangers on July 1 as part of the K’Andre Miller sign-and-trade. It wasn’t because Morrow demanded a trade, but rather because Carolina wanted Miller — they quickly signed the 25-year-old defenseman to an eight-year, $60 million contract that carries an average annual value of $7.5 million.
Scott Morrow following in Adam Fox’s footsteps with Rangers
The Rangers have already seen what an elite college defenseman can become in the NHL. Fox had 116 points (21 goals, 95 assists) in 97 games during three seasons at Harvard. He was widely considered one of the smartest puck-moving players — regardless of position — in college hockey.
Morrow’s path hasn’t been identical to Fox’s, but the production is on the same level. Over three years at UMass, he posted 94 points (28 goals, 66 assists) in 109 games. He’s second all-time in points by a defenseman in Minutemen history.
Each made an immediate impact as a freshman. Fox finished with 40 points in his first season, while Morrow broke out with 33 and became the first freshman in UMass history to earn First-Team All-America honors.
Fox slid seamlessly into the NHL and quickly became a fixture on the Rangers’ top defense pair. He won the Norris Trophy as the League’s top defenseman in 2020-21 and has 361 points (63 goals, 306 assists) in 431 games.
Morrow didn’t jump straight to the NHL, and he’s not guaranteed a roster spot out of training camp with the Rangers this fall. But there’s a good chance he will land a spot on the third pair and give the Blueshirts a second solid puck-mover on the blue line.
Right behind Fox, that is.
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