Here’s what Rangers fans were saying about Trouba a year ago.
Nov 26, 2023
“Trouba has been a force this year. He's been on another level.”
Nov 26, 2023
“Trouba gets little credit for how this team plays and for adding much needed grit. For a long time players could skate across our blueline with their eyes closed, cut in front of our goalie without even thinking. He's changed that, he's a modern day Stevens without the head shot hits.”
Nov 26, 2023
“Trouba is a beast. Yes he gets a fat paycheck. IMO he's lived up to it. Fox out and the guy has stepped up big time. What would a prime Chris Pronger fetch in 2023?”
Nov 26, 2023
“I think this years trouba shows just how badly he was hurt last year and how much it affected his play even when he kept trying to play through the injury. He's been great this year”
Nov 30, 2023
“Trouba has been lights out so far this year. He is definitely earning his paycheck..even if a bit overpaid.”
Nov 30, 2023
“The organization hasnt had a guy leading them with this kind of toughness and grit in a long time.”
Nov 30, 2023
“Love the guy and he walks the walk like a true leader always does. Great for our young guys to see.”
Nov 30, 2023
“I think Trouba has been a solid middle pairing guy. He’s worth 6m/year. We pay him 2m for leadership. The team is winning. He hasn’t been making egregious mistakes. Happy with the captain right now.”
Dec 12, 2023
“Love this guy. He isn’t just a leader. He makes the game entertaining and gets fans into the game with huge hits and clutch plays. Can’t overstate the importance of that.”
In March, he broke his ankle and played poorly when he returned.
June 2, 2024
“The Trouba that came back from injury looked nothing like the Trouba of the first 3 months of the season.”
June 3, 2024
“Before making any contract move Id like to know what happened this season. His first 3 months were dramatically different than his play after injury.”
June 3, 2024
“My thoughts on Trouba is that he has to be injured. He either re-broke his foot, or sprained his ankle.”
One day later, on June 4, 2024, it was reported that the injury Trouba sustained earlier in the season was a broken ankle, a “kidney bean sized chunk” came out of his ankle.
“It wasn’t weight-bearing so he could walk but skating with tight turns didn’t feel good,” NHL.com’s Dan Rosen wrote via X. “He was limited at times by it, but he emphasized that it is not an excuse for anything.”
Rangers fans soured on Trouba and it was evident the media had gotten to him. Take a look at his tweet on June 5, 2024:
In the summer, the Rangers tried to trade him and he invoked his NTC. Trouba said he felt he was “put in a position this summer to make a decision between my career and my family” and he said it “may have made it difficult to play kind of with that hanging over everything.”
Mollie Walker with the NY Post agreed: “Trouba’s on-ice performance to start this season appeared to be influenced by the offseason. It was most likely subconscious, but Trouba did not seem to have the same commitment to the team he clearly felt spurned by this summer.”
Trouba is only 30 years old — he may be the perfect buy low candidate.
