The Anaheim Ducks acquired New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba today, in exchange for Urho Vaakanainen and a 2025 fourth-round pick.
Trouba is 30 years old, and his contract carries an $8 million cap hit until 2026. This season, Trouba has averaged 20 minutes per game in ice time, registering six assists in 24 games. He’s been with the Rangers since 2019, serving as the team’s captain since 2022.
Vaakanainen is 25 years old, and has been with the Ducks since part way through the 2021-22 season, when he was acquired from the Boston Bruins. He was a regular member of the lineup last season, but played just five games this season. Vaakanainen found himself on the outside looking, following the offseason addition of Brian Dumoulin, along with Olen Zellweger making the full-time jump to the NHL, and more recently, Drew Helleson as well.
It’s a cap dump for the Rangers, shedding Trouba’s pricey deal. Per Elliotte Friedman, the Rangers had planned to put Trouba on waivers if they couldn’t find a trade partner, so Trouba didn’t have a ton of options.
Trouba has seen a decline over his time in New York, but does bring some value. It’s just not anywhere near $8 million worth of value. He'll be physical and tough to play against, but the offensive part of his game has really faded over recent years, and his defensive impact has been inconsistent.
Still, Trouba could aid the Ducks' blue line in the sense that it’s a very young group. He can help to shelter some of the younger defensemen, allowing them to play in smaller roles short-term to aid their development.
I may not be as down on the move as some others are. While taking on an $8 million contract isn’t ideal, the reality is that it probably won’t limit the Ducks a ton cap-wise. They’re still poised to have an abundance of cap space heading into next summer, and by the time they need to start paying a lot of their young talent, Trouba’s contract will have expired. Essentially, it shouldn’t really end up limiting Anaheim’s ability to add other pieces.
You would’ve liked to see an asset attached to take on Trouba’s contract, but if it was believed that Trouba would’ve been claimed off waivers by a team like Columbus, then they weren’t going to get any assets anyways.
If it works out, Trouba could help to round-out the team’s blue line a little bit. If it doesn’t, he’ll be gone in 2026 by the time it could really cause any damage to Anaheim’s cap flexibility anyways.
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