Jacob Trouba was traded to the Anaheim Ducks by the New York Rangers on Friday for defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a fourth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.
Earlier Friday, the Rangers announced that Trouba, the team's captain, would not be in the lineup for their 4-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins for roster management purposes, leaving the defenseman's future with the team unclear. Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said that the team had decided to move in a different direction.
"I think our team needs a direction," Laviolette said. "We're not playing well right now. I think when you're not having the success that you want there has to be a direction that moves differently. This was the decision."
Laviolette added after the win against the Penguins, “I can tell you and I said this to him, I thought while we were here, our time here, I thought he was a really good player and a really good teammate, a good person. I thought he worked hard and tried to set a great example for the New York Rangers. These days are never easy. I enjoyed working with him and I wish him nothing but the best. He’s a good man and this was obviously a tough day. Change is a tough day. I wish him the best. For his time that he was here, I thought that he was very good for us.”
Rangers general manager Chris Drury said Saturday they're in no rush to name a new captain.
“No set timeline at all,” Drury said. “I do think with having the captain traded it will open up an opportunity for some other people to step up into leadership roles regardless of what year they are in the League or what year they are here.
“I do think we have a lot of good leaders in a lot of different areas on our team regardless of age or experience, and I think some people are eager to step up in that regard. It’ll be nice to watch and see.”
Trouba, 30, has one more season remaining on the seven-year, $56 million contract ($8 million average annual value) he signed with the Rangers as a restricted free agent on July 19, 2019, after he was acquired in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets. The Ducks will take on the remainder of the contract.
"Anaheim was one of the places my wife and I were interested in," Trouba said. "Just everything about it. Where the team's at, I think they have a great opportunity in the next couple years. It's kind of a similar situation to when I came to New York with the really good young players that are ready to take the next step, and if there's something I can do to help contribute to that, I think that's my goal.
"Obviously, I’m friends with (Ducks forwards) Frank (Vatrano) and Ryan Strome, so those are two guys that I have talked to in the past. I’m still pretty good buddies with them, have talked to them over the past couple of years, so, obviously I know what they say about the organization, and they speak very highly of the players and the team. It’s an organization that is ready to take the next real step, and hopefully this is another step in the right direction.”
Trouba played 16:45 for New York (14-11-1) in a 5-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Monday, and a season-low 13:37 in a 4-3 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Nov. 30.
On Saturday, the Rangers signed goalie Igor Shesterkin to an eight-year, $92 million contract ($11.5 million AAV) that begins next season. Shesterkin could have become an unrestricted free agent July 1, 2025.
The Rangers play the fourth of a five-game homestand Sunday against the Seattle Kraken (1 p.m. ET; KHN, KONG, NHLN, MSG, SN, TVAS).
“There’s always a lot of moving parts and it’s my job to try to figure out on a day to day and week to week basis on what the team needs,” Drury said. “I’m certainly not opposed to making more changes, but big picture with that said, the team has been through a lot the last couple of weeks and certainly this week. I’d like to let the dust settle a little bit. … We’d just like to let the team get settled with this a little bit.
“We had a good game last night, and I think we played better in the last few games before the win [Friday] night. Looking forward to hopefully finishing off this homestand with Seattle and Chicago on a positive note.”
The Rangers, who won the Presidents' Trophy last season for having the best record in the League and advanced to the Eastern Conference Final, are fourth in the Metropolitan Division and currently hold the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
"It's not meant to be a message (to the rest of the team)," Laviolette said prior to the trade. “I think everybody is understanding of where we’ve been for the last month and how we’ve played. We can’t continue down that road or we’ll find ourselves out of the playoffs. The best thing is we need to set a path that can move us back up in the standings and we haven't played well. I didn’t view it like that, but it is a change."
