Trade Spotlight: Trouba Goes to Anaheim
How Are the Ducks and Rangers Affected On a Fantasy End?
In some interesting NHL hot stove news today, the New York Rangers traded defenseman and captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks for Urho Vaakanainen and an Anaheim fourth-round pick.
Trouba was widely mentioned as a likely trade candidate for a Rangers team that is 4th in the Metropolitan Division with 27 points. New York was expected to be competitive in the division due to the bevy of veterans on their roster. Unfortunately, the Rangers haven’t clicked this year, with many of their expected impact skaters (Chris Kreider, Vincent Trocheck, K’Andre Miller, and Trouba) off to slow starts.
New York’s 30-year-old captain has been on a bit of a decline in fantasy over the past two seasons.
After scoring 39 points, 11 goals, and posting a +23 plus/minus in 2021-2022 with the Rangers, he has seen his point totals decline to 30 in 2022-2023 and 22 in 2023-2024. This season has been one of Trouba’s worst campaigns yet, as he not only has just six points in 24 games, but he also is averaging 0.25 PTS/G and is on pace for only 21 points in 82 games. That pace would be his worst mark since the 2015-2016 season with Winnipeg.
Here’s how Trouba’s other metrics have looked the season with the Rangers before Friday’s trade.
Trouba is 40% rostered in Yahoo leagues, and it’s understandable why fantasy managers continue to utilize the former Rangers blue-liner.
He is averaging 1.92 SOG/G and is a banger-league darling, averaging 1.54 Hits/G and 2.83 Blocks/G. He also saw a lot of time in the penalty kill, with a 56.7% Short-Handed ice time percentage. That sets him well for short-handed points, a category in some fantasy leagues (particularly the KKUPFL).
On the flip side, he barely saw any time on the Rangers’ power play, as evidenced by his 0:08 PP TOI and 3.3% PP%. He was also primarily paired with Ryan Lindgren on the blue line (137:41 TOI), and the pair failed to do much together on a scoring and fantasy end. They had a -2 plus/minus together and a 39.5% SF% and 44.3% CF%, both lackluster marks regarding shot creation.
Trouba didn’t seem to fit into New York’s blue-line plans anymore, and they traded him when they had the opportunity, which was with the Ducks.
Let’s examine what Trouba will bring to the Anaheim defense, what his fantasy outlook could be with the Ducks, and which Rangers blue-liners could be affected by the trade of their former captain.
Trouba Should Slide Into Anaheim First Line
According to Dobber’s Anaheim Ducks depth chart, Trouba likely will be paired with 33-year-old Cam Fowler. The veteran blue-liner has only played in 13 games with the Ducks and scored only two points this year. He is also on a cold streak, with zero points in his last five games.
Like Trouba, Fowler is a blocks machine, with 20 blocked shots and averages 1.54 blocks/G. Unfortunately, he doesn’t do much else. Fowler only averages 0.15 Hits/G, 0.15 Pts/G, and 0.77 SOG/G. He is only rostered in three percent of Yahoo leagues, which makes him solely a deep league option (and that’s generous).
It’s unlikely that Fowler will get much of a fantasy boost with Trouba’s arrival.
The defenseman worth watching after this trade is the 21-year-old rookie Olen Zellweger.
The Candian defenseman is rostered in 16% of Yahoo leagues and has been the Ducks’ primarily on the second line with fellow blue-liner Jackson Lacombe. Zellweger has four goals and 10 points in 23 games, averaging 0.43 PTS/G, and is on pace for 36 points over 82 games.
Unfortunately, Zellweger has scored zero points in his last four games. Here’s how his season profile looks via Dobber.
Zellweger is a better hits option than Fowler and still blocks a decent amount of shots at 1.17 per game. He also has an SH% of 7.3% and produces 2.39 SOG/G. The SH% feels unsustainable, but adding Trouba could mix Zellweger’s pairings on the blue line. That could help him maintain his substantial shot-volume numbers.
Zellweger has succeeded with Lacombe this season as a more “offensive-oriented” blue line. The pair has produced eight goals, a +3 plus/minus, a 63% SF%, and 55.4% CF%.
Furthermore, Zellweger leads defensemen in PP TOI with a 2:58 mark. With four PPP this season, fantasy managers should still expect Zellweger to be the Ducks’ power-play quarterback, even if he may be a third-line defenseman in even-strength situations.
Fantasy managers should probably trust that Zellweger will get more playing time than Fowler, an aging veteran who doesn’t offer much more than Trouba or Gudas on the blue line. It wouldn’t be surprising if Gudas supplants Fowler when Trouba officially joins the club early next week (Trouba is out for Anaheim’s Friday night contest).
Gudas and Trouba could be a physical defensive pair that could help hold down opponent rushes, something the Ducks have struggled with, as their 33.3 SA/G is the highest in the NHL.
Gudas is a banger-first player, averaging 3.08 Hits/G and 2.50 Blocks/G. That’s a primary reason he’s rostered in 27% of leagues. The Ducks captain could see a boost in those categories, and perhaps others like shots, if he does get paired with the similarly skilled Trouba.
Vaakanainen A Long Shot; But Watch Lindgren and Schneider
The Rangers acquired the 25-year-old Vaakanainen from Anaheim, and it’s unlikely that he will have much of an impact with the Rangers. The Finnish blue-liner only played in five games with the Ducks, and his numbers weren’t awe-inspiring in that small sample.
While Vaakanainen won’t be much of a player on New York’s blue-line rotation, two defensemen could be affected with Trouba no longer a Ranger:
Lindgren and Braden Schneider.
Lindgren was primarily paired with Trouba this season, but he also has seen a lot of ice time with Adam Fox, the Rangers’ primary power-play defenseman (2:55 TOI).
The Lindgren-Fox line has netted four goals, a zero plus/minus, a 48.9% SF%, and a 52.6% CF% in 135:20 TOI. That’s much better than the Lindgren-Trouba pairing, and with Trouba gone, Lindgren and Fox can focus on building their chemistry as we advance in the season.
Schneider is a younger blue-line option at 23 years old and has produced solid numbers in a limited time (16:51 TOI).
Schneider is a solid banger-league option, as demonstrated by his 1.36 Hits/G and 1.84 Blocks/G. However, he also produces 1.40 SOG/G, a 10.6% 5-on-5 SH%, and 0.36 PTS/G, solid numbers for a defenseman, especially on the third line. Thus, he has some points upside as a blue-liner, and his 71.4% secondary assist percentage could make him a sneaky apple option in deep leagues.
Schneider has recently been paired with Miller, and they have collected two goals, a -3 plus/minus, a 41.4% SH%, and a 40% CF%. Those numbers aren’t great, but I’m curious to see if they will see a bit of a bump with Trouba no longer lingering behind them on the third line.
If that pairing doesn’t produce in the coming week or two, expect Schneider to see a line change to maximize his offensive ability as a defenseman.
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