After being eliminated in the Eastern Conference Finals for the second time in three seasons, the New York Rangers have to figure out what their issues are and how to address them going into next season and beyond. Even though their top players did not score enough goals in the series against the Florida Panthers, it was the defense that was a bigger concern. They could not move the puck out of the zone quickly enough, and they would be trapped in the defensive zone for long shifts. The player who was arguably the worst player for the Rangers in the series was their captain, Jacob Trouba. His lack of foot speed and puck-moving ability were evident, and he was a liability for the team every time he was on the ice
Trouba is under contract for the next two seasons at an $8 million cap hit. His contract is an anchor for this team, and if you asked Rangers General Manager Chris Drury which contract he would like to move from, he would tell you that this contract would be the first one to go. In this piece, we are going to look at the three options the Rangers have with Trouba this offseason and see how each of those scenarios could play out.
The Rangers Keep Him for Next Season
This is the most likely of the three options. While Trouba’s trade protection does get lighter starting July 1st, it is unlikely that any team would want to trade for his full cap hit. The most likely outcome is the Rangers will end up keeping Trouba going into next season and see if his play will improve. There may be some positives in keeping him around because even if his on-ice play has taken a hit, his off-ice leadership is still very important to this team. He was named captain for a reason and his teammates look to him when the going gets tough. He can still provide that spark when the team needs one, whether it’s a big hit or a locker room speech; he is a great leader for this team.
When it comes to his on-ice play, he will likely start next season as the third-pairing right-handed defenseman. After he suffered an injury in March of this season, he came back and snuggled playing on his normal pair with K’Andre Miller. He was moved to the third pair to end the season and to start the playoffs. While he did play a few games in the playoffs with Miller, he eventually was moved back and ended the playoffs on the third pair. Braden Schneider has proven that he can take on that role and play with Miller and with Trouba’s game not at its best, he needs to play less if the Rangers want to win. While it isn’t a great look to have a third-paring defenseman making $8 million, it’s a better spot for him than having to go against the other teams’ top talent on a nightly basis.
The Rangers Buyout his Contract
If the Rangers want to clear out cap space and can’t find a trade for Trouba, one of the other options is to buyout the final two years of his contract. The buyout would last four years and the Rangers would save four million the first two years and then have a cap hit of two million the last two years. Getting four million of extra cap space could be very beneficial for this team if they want to make improvements that will have an impact next season. The Rangers need to find a legit top-six right winger this offseason, and with almost nine million in cap space as of this writing and still having to sign their other restricted free agents, that money is going to be gone very quickly. With an extra four million, it can put them in the conversation for some of the top free agents like Jake Guentzel, or they could go out and trade for a player and not worry as much if they have a bigger cap hit because they would have the space to accommodate it.
Related: Rangers Must Embrace Change the Way Panther, Lightning Did
As mentioned earlier, if Trouba were to stay, he would likely be the third-pairing defenseman. If they buy him out, the Rangers could go look for a cheaper, more mobile defenseman to replace him because that is another need they have to fill. The Rangers need more mobile defensemen that are big and can also move the puck quickly. Trouba is big, but he isn’t quick, and that causes problems on most nights. While it might be a bad look to buy out the captain of the team, it could be the best move for the Rangers in the long term.
Trading Trouba’s Contract
Out of the three options talked about, this is the least likely to happen. Prior to the 2024-25 season, Trouba had a full no-move clause in his contract. However, it will now change to him submitting a 15-team no-trade list. So, there will be 16 potential teams that the Rangers could hypothetically trade him to this offseason. However, many of those teams will likely be teams that have other needs to fill or don’t have the cap space to take on his deal. The Rangers could retain part of his salary, but they also don’t want to add on any assets for a team to just take on the contract. While it would be nice to get back draft picks in trade, the Rangers are in a win-now mode. If they were to trade Trouba, they would likely be looking to get a player that can help them win right now; it isn’t known what would even be available to them. They don’t want to just dump his deal because they still see some value in him, but will there be a “hockey trade” for them to make? We will have to wait and see.
Trouba has had a very rocky time with the Rangers ever since coming over in the 2019 offseason. From the moment he signed his contract, there was always going to be a portion of the fanbase that would hate on him because he could never live up to being an $8 million player. If he was making four million, this conversation would not be happening, and there would be other players the fans would jump on. Since he is making this much money and he is struggling, the fans will always have a reason to hate on him. The Rangers have an $8 million problem, and it will be interesting to see whether or not he stays or goes this offseason.
