ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Anaheim Ducks have acquired New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba in a trade for defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a future fourth-round pick, a person with knowledge of the decision tells The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Friday because the clubs were still finishing up the deal.
The trade ends Trouba’s five-year tenure with the Rangers, who have lost six of their last seven games. The 30-year-old defenseman joined the Rangers in a trade with Winnipeg in 2019, and he became New York’s captain before the 2022-23 season.
Trouba has been considered one of the NHL’s best checking defensemen at the height of his talents. He has six assists in 23 games this year while struggling to produce offensively at the level of his best seasons, including a career-best 50 points with Winnipeg in 2018-19.
Trouba has been featured in trade rumors since the summer while New York general manager Chris Drury didn’t try to hide his desire for a roster reboot, but Trouba has a robust no-trade clause. He is completing the sixth season of a seven-year, $56 million contract, and his hefty deal has been an impediment to movement.
The Ducks can accommodate the final 1 1/2 years of Trouba’s deal because they have one of the NHL’s lowest payrolls and ample salary cap space after general manager Pat Verbeek failed to land any top free agents last summer.
Trouba will immediately become a key contributor on the blue line for the Ducks, who are in last place in the Pacific Division. He will also play alongside Anaheim forwards Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano, his teammates with the Rangers during the club’s run to the Eastern Conference finals in 2022.
Vaakanainen hasn’t played for Anaheim since Nov. 13 while dealing with an upper-body injury. The veteran played 68 games and scored one goal for the Ducks last season, but he has been injured frequently during his career with Boston and Anaheim.
___
This story has been corrected to show the Rangers have lost six of their last sevens games, not seven games in a row.
___
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL
