Jacob Trouba Is Not What The Oilers Need

Finn Marceau

Dec 6, 2024, 16:43

Finn Marceau

Dec 6, 2024, 16:43

The Oilers would be wise to steer clear of the Rangers captain as trade rumours swirl.

The captain of the New York Rangers is on the move.

Two weeks after a defeat at the hands of the Oilers that sent the organization into panic mode, the Rangers are on the verge of either trading or waiving defenceman Jacob Trouba today. Either way, he's being held out of the lineup for tonight's game as the situation plays out.

It's been reported that while the Rangers have a few prospective deals lined up, they all depend on Trouba waiving his no-trade clause. If he refuses, the Rangers will simply waive him and one of those teams pursuing him will claim him.

So, could he be coming to Edmonton?

It's a tempting fit. Everyone knows the Oilers are looking for a right-shot top-four defenceman to play with Darnell Nurse. Options are so limited that they've been linked to multiple lefties with the hope that they can play on their off-hand. Now along comes a bonafide top-four righty with 12 years of NHL experience at just 30 years old. It seems pretty perfect on its face.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eYLth2VTzk[/embed]

But there are three big problems with Trouba's fit in Edmonton: his contract, his no-trade clause, and his play.

First off, I just don't see how the Oilers could fit Trouba's $8 million cap hit. With Evander Kane on LTIR, the Oilers have about $5.5 million to work with, which would either require the Rangers to eat a significant portion of Trouba's contract or the Oilers to send out about $3 million in a trade.

The only real candidates for such a move would be Jeff Skinner, who would have to waive his no-move clause, or Adam Henrique, which would leave the Oilers without a third-line centre. Brett Kulak's $2.75 cap hit would probably work as well, but as we'll get to later, that would actually represent a downgrade on the blueline.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkVoAqaWbWY[/embed]

On top of that, Trouba has a modified no-trade clause that the Rangers are trying frantically to work around. Trouba forced his way out of Winnipeg to New York in 2019 and seems to want to stay in the US. Even if the Oilers were to claim him on waivers, he's already indicated he doesn't want to play in a northern prairie city. Why take on a guy who doesn't want to be here?

Finally, the most important factor: Trouba just hasn't been all that good lately. Sure, he gets a lot of fame and recognition for his physical game and old-school massive hits, but his on-ice impacts are severely lacking.

The last time Trouba had an expected goals share over 50% was in his age-23 season in 2017-18. He's been below 43% each of the past two years, and has never had a season where his team performs better when he's on the ice. There's just no proof he would be an upgrade on the Oilers' current blueline, especially with Brett Kulak's breakout.

There was a time when he looked like an absolute stud on the Jets' blueline next to Josh Morrissey, but that was a long time ago. He's still got talent, and he can still drive a little offence. But Jacob Trouba is overrated and overpaid, and Oilers fans should be grateful that they don't seem to be one of the teams pursuing him strongly.

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