Ducks acquire Rangers captain Jacob Trouba in exchange for draft pick Vaakalainen, AP source says
ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Anaheim Ducks 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 move told The Associated Press .
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Friday because the clubs were still finalizing 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 ahead of the 2022-23 season.
Trouba is considered one of the best defensemen in the NHL at the peak of his talent. He has six assists in 23 games this year while struggling to produce offensively at the level of his best seasons, including a career-high 50 points with Winnipeg in 2018-19.
Trouba has been the subject of trade rumors since the summer, while New York general manager Chris Drury has made no attempt to hide his desire to restart the team, but Trouba has a solid no-trade clause . He’s finishing the sixth season of a seven-year, $56 million contract, and his hefty contract has been a barrier to the move.
The Ducks can fit into the final year and a half of the Trouba deal because they have one of the lowest payrolls in the NHL and enough salary cap space after general manager Pat Verbeek didn’t managed to sign top-tier free agents last summer.
Trouba will immediately become a key contributor to the Ducks’ blue line, who sit last 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 due to an upper-body injury. The veteran played in 68 games and scored one goal for the Ducks last season, but he was frequently injured during his career with Boston and Anaheim.
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This story has been corrected to show that the Rangers have lost six of their last seven games, not seven in a row.
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