8 NHL Teams That Should Be Interested in Trading for Jacob Trouba
Jacob Trouba requested a trade from the Winnipeg Jets back in May. In late September, that trade request went public, with his agent, Kurt Overhardt, providing a statement to multiple media outlets, including Sportsnet.
It’s a big deal because Trouba is a rarity in the NHL. It’s awfully hard to find a good, young defenceman who can skate, handle the puck and play with a physical edge. It’s even rarer to find a right-shooting player who checks all those boxes. Those players who do generally aren’t available on the trade market. The 22-year-old Trouba is all of those things.
There aren’t many teams in the league for whom Trouba would be a bad fit, but there are some specific clubs that should be especially interested in the blueliner. The following slideshow considers eight of those teams, examining why they could use the player, what they could offer in trade—keeping in mind Winnipeg's obvious need for a left-shooting defender), and where Trouba would slot in their lineup if a deal were made.
Boston Bruins
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Why it makes sense: Of all the suspect choices made by the Boston Bruins the last few years, the decision to flip Dougie Hamilton to the Calgary Flames for magic beans in 2015 makes the least amount of sense. Hamilton was then 22 and a capable, right-shooting defenceman who was a great fit to apprentice next to Zdeno Chara before eventually taking over the top job. They’ve needed a Hamilton-type ever since, and Trouba is one of the few plausibly available players who would fit the bill.
What they could offer: There’s the rub. The Bruins don’t really have a good, young, NHL-ready left shot defenceman to offer up in trade. They would need to base a trade either on a young forward or a rich package of assets, and the Jets might not be interested in either possibility. Colin Miller or perhaps Jakub Zboril might make sense as a centerpiece, but a lot more would need to be included.
Where he’d play: Next to Chara is the obvious place, thereby reinforcing the top pairing as the Slovak enters his 40s. Torey Krug is also a player who makes sense as a confederate to some degree, but with the Bruins’ other right-side options mostly being physical stay-at-home types, there exists no shortage of plausible partners for him.
Calgary Flames
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Why it makes sense: Calgary has two of the best left-shot defencemen in the business in Mark Giordano and T.J. Brodie. Dougie Hamilton is an excellent right-shooting option, but there’s a steep drop-off from No. 3 to No. 4 on the Flames’ depth chart. Adding in Trouba would give the Flames a killer top four.
What they could offer: Trading Brodie makes a world of sense for Winnipeg and almost no sense for Calgary. The Flames are another one of those teams that could put together a package but would struggle to find a centerpiece player whose trade would work for both clubs. There isn’t really a fit on defence, and even if the Jets wanted a forward, that would be a tough deal to make. Oliver Kylington might have some appeal.
Where he’d play: Hamilton was effective next to Giordano last season, so in a scenario involving the Flames, it probably makes sense to stick Brodie with Trouba. The third defence pairing would get to be good at opening the door on the bench.
Dallas Stars
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Why it makes sense: The Dallas Stars are taking a rarely seen approach to team building, putting together one of the most fearsome forwards corps in the NHL and backing it up with a green defence and questionable goaltending. Trouba wouldn’t add a wealth of experience to the blue line, but he would make it better instantly and, along with John Klingberg, give Dallas a nasty one-two punch on the right side. For a team in a position to contend this year, that isn’t a bad idea at all.
What they could offer: Dallas has some good young players, including on the blue line. Esa Lindell combined a 6’3”, 210-pound frame with 14 goals in the AHL last year and is knocking at the door of full-time NHL employment. Julius Honka had 44 points in the minors last year and was a first-rounder in 2014. Either might be an appropriate centerpiece in any deal.
Where he’d play: Dan Hamhuis seems ticketed for the spot next to Klingberg on the first pairing. Trouba would anchor the second in this scenario, likely starting out with Johnny Oduya, but perhaps eventually lining up next to one of the Stars’ emerging young blueliners.
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Detroit Red Wings
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Why it makes sense: The Detroit Red Wings have needed right-shooting defencemen for seemingly forever; it’s why the team paid a General Fanager-reported $18 million to bring in Mike Green via free agency. The Red Wings have also needed an injection of youth for what feels like the longest time, with no real heir apparent in the system to replace Niklas Kronwall. Trouba would nicely address both needs.
What they could offer: The obvious—and doubtless unpopular—player to entice Winnipeg is hometown Red Wing Danny Dekeyser. The undrafted left-shot defenceman is in the prime of his career and signed through 2022 and would certainly be appealing for the Jets; the trouble is Detroit’s interest in dealing him has to be pretty low. The Red Wings also have several good young forwards who might work as alternate pieces in a deal and the depth to move them.
Where he’d play: Trouba would immediately be the best player on the Red Wings blue line regardless of whether Dekeyser were moved in a deal. Detroit has no shortage of potential left-shot partners, starting with Kronwall and Dekeyser and going from there. Trouba would certainly play ahead of Green in the defensive rotation.
Edmonton Oilers
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Why it makes sense: The Edmonton Oilers have been desperate for help on defence generally and the right side in particular for a while. The addition of Adam Larsson, at the rather steep cost of Taylor Hall, was an attempt to address this deficiency, but there’s still a need for another top-four right-shooting option given the coach’s apparent indifference to incumbent Mark Fayne. Trouba would also be a strong fit for a young team centered on Connor McDavid.
What they could offer: Darnell Nurse. Nurse, 21, is basically the same age and has many of the same qualities as Trouba; the key differences between the two are they shoot in opposite directions and that Trouba was ahead of where Nurse is at the same age. The Jets are likely to have trouble finding a piece like Nurse in trade, while the Oilers could better balance handedness on their blue line and upgrade overall.
Where he’d play: Larsson and compatriot Oscar Klefbom seem to be a shoo-in for the shutdown pairing on the blue line, which leaves a logical spot next to veteran Andrej Sekera for Trouba to take over.
Los Angeles Kings
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Why it makes sense: The Los Angeles Kings haven’t been the same since losing Slava Voynov in 2015. Drew Doughty is a lock in the top job on the Los Angeles blue line, but there’s certainly room for another good right-shooting defenceman inside the top four. L.A. should be a contender this year and for the foreseeable future, and addressing that hole on the second pairing would do much to help matters.
What they could offer: Cap space would be a tough thing to manage in any deal. The Kings would certainly have to move a defenceman—likely either Alec Martinez or Brayden McNabb—but either of those players certainly wouldn’t get the job done trade-wise. L.A. does have some young NHL forwards who might appeal, but winning for years has reduced the number of assets in the system the team could offer.
Where he’d play: It would depend on the night. Head coach Darryl Sutter would have the option of loading up the top pairing with Doughty and Jake Muzzin together or giving Doughty the survivor of Martinez and McNabb in order to run Muzzin and Trouba on the second pairing.
New York Rangers
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Why it makes sense: The New York Rangers don’t have a lot of good defencemen. The club unwisely hitched its wagon to Dan Girardi and Marc Staal (four more years on the former’s contract and five on the latter’s), so New York doesn’t have a lot of money to play with on the blue line. Nevertheless, it would be a waste of some other excellent talents—notably Ryan McDonagh and Henrik Lundqvist—and a perfectly good half-decade to wait for those deals to run their course.
What they could offer: Like a lot of teams, the Rangers would have difficulty constructing a deal that would work for both them and the Jets. New York would need to put a package together, likely centered on one of its young forwards—J.T. Miller being the most logical—and left-shot defender Brady Skjei. There likely isn’t an appealing deal here from a Winnipeg perspective.
Where he’d play: Trouba would certainly be the best right-shooting defenceman on the roster. Coach Alain Vigneault could load up the top pair by giving him McDonagh as a partner, but it would be more prudent to build one pair around McDonagh and the other around Trouba.
Toronto Maple Leafs
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Why it makes sense: The rebuilding Toronto Maple Leafs are one of the most logical destinations for Trouba. He’s a good fit in terms of age, coming in just a little bit older than most of the team’s young forwards, and Toronto doesn’t yet have a linchpin defender on the right side. Additionally, the Leafs have a nice collection of young players and certainly boast the assets to make deal.
What they could offer: Jake Gardiner is the logical player to build a deal around. He’s in the prime of his career, under team control at a reasonable dollar figure ($4.05 million, per General Fanager) for three more seasons and would immediately be Winnipeg’s best left-shooting defenceman. Toss in some futures to top the trade up, and the Jets would have trouble finding a better deal out there.
Where he’d play: Trouba would be the club’s best right-shot defenceman. He could play with Morgan Rielly on a loaded top pairing, but given the state of the Leafs blue line, he would more likely anchor a unit of his own, perhaps with Martin Marincin.
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