Trocheck’s play hasn’t deteriorated, although he did have a somewhat down season after the 2024 postseason run. Trocheck’s presence in the locker room didn’t prove to help either, as the team struggled to get on the same page, and Trocheck’s nightly “we’re doing the right things” quotes infuriated rather than reassured fans. With a slightly improved team this season, Drury may want to keep his prized center.
Still, the Rangers may want to consider moving the Pittsburgh native. This is the root of the Trocheck dilemma: he may be their best trading chip for a quicker adjustment to get younger and faster.
Trocheck has a great contract that expires after the 2028-2029 season and carries a cap hit of $5.625 million. Honestly, given Trocheck’s two-way play and production, his deal is an absolute steal and could be considered one of the best contracts in the NHL. That makes him invaluable to any team. You might be thinking, why would the Rangers want to move on such a great contract?
Well, the Rangers have little to no prospects and few valuable draft picks ahead. Trading Trocheck would net at least a first-round pick and a high-end prospect, probably more. These types of moves are often better reserved for the offseason, but if a team sees Trocheck as their missing piece for this season and as a future part of their championship core, the Rangers would be foolish not to listen. So are the Rangers fueling the Trocheck dilemma by leaving him dangling?
And if a team wants to offer a huge pick for the center, can the Rangers say no? This makes the Trocheck dilemma difficult to navigate. The Rangers shouldn’t expect to contend anytime soon, as the team doesn’t have any true championship core members outside of Igor Shesterkin and Adam Fox. Unless they make a wild change right away, the best option is to acquire top assets and hope those assets develop quickly, while both Fox and Shesterkin are still churning out elite production.
This trade deadline, for example, could be the perfect opportunity to do just that. It’s not just the Trocheck dilemma either, as combining that with an Artemi Panarin trade could yield several top prospects and multiple first-round picks. Even if they don’t want to rebuild, the Rangers could use these assets on players younger and better than the pair. The Trocheck dilemma is complicated because there are many different options if/when he is traded.
Personally, I think Trocheck has an excellent contract and is a very valuable member of the team, but the most valuable thing he can do at this point in his Rangers tenure is bring back a boatload of assets. The Rangers need to get younger, Trocheck is getting older. It’s an unfortunate truth.
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