More controversy for ex-Rangers captain on 1-year anniversary of Ducks trade
Almost exactly one year to the day that the New York Rangers traded him to the Anaheim Ducks, Jacob Trouba found himself in the middle of the NHL news cycle yet again Friday.
The former Rangers captain delivered a massive and controversial hit on Washington Capitals forward Ryan Leonard late in the first period of Anaheim’s 4-3 shootout victory. Trouba caught Leonard from the blind side with his shoulder on a thunderous hit behind the Ducks net.
Leonard’s head snapped back and he fell hard to the ice. After a few moments, the rookie skated off on his own, bleeding from the mouth. He didn’t return to the game and Washington coach Spencer Carbery said postgame only that Leonard will “be out” with an upper-body injury.
Officials originally assessed Trouba a five-minute major penalty. That allowed them to review the hit on video, after which they reversed course and rescinded the penalty. Apparently, the officials believed Trouba didn’t target Leonard’s head, and took into account that the defenseman committed to the hit before Leonard leaned back to look the other way, and was blindsided.
Trouba’s no stranger to controversy, penalties, nor suspensions when it comes to his crushing body-checks. The 31-year-old routinely walks that fine between legal and illegal hits. This incident is just that, the latest in a long list of borderline hits.
Carbery was irate on the bench when the referees overturned the original penalty call. After the game, though, the Capitals coach didn’t say if he thought the hit was illegal. But he did take issue with Trouba’s intent
“The thing I don’t like about the hit, so there’s big hits, and guys get hurt. It’s a fast game,” Carbery explained afterward. “What I don’t like about that specific hit is that he’s engaged with another player. When [Leaonard is] engaged with — I think it was [Radko] Gudas behind the net, or whoever he was engaged with — as he was going around the net. So he’s being checked. So to me, that’s now a player looking for someone that’s in a vulnerable spot. And I think those are dicey hits.”
Rugged Capitals forward Tom Wilson, no stranger to controversial borderline hits himself, said he challenged Trouba to fight twice after the Leonard incident, but the Ducks veteran turned him down each time.
“[Trouba] knows exactly what he was doing,” Wilson said postgame. “Kid’s in a vulnerable spot and obviously Leno’s pretty banged up.”
Jacob Trouba back in NHL headlines, 1 year after Rangers traded him to Ducks
Trouba was in his third season as Rangers captain and sixth with the team, when they traded him on Dec. 6, 2024, to the Ducks for defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a mid-round draft pick. Rangers general manager Chris Drury sought to move the hard-hitting captain for several months to clear salary cap space and change the roster mix.
The Trouba trade was the first of several Drury made last season to shake up the Rangers core amid a lousy season, one that ended without a trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in four years. The overhaul continued into the offseason, when the Rangers traded Chris Kreider to the Ducks.
Trouba and Kreider return to Madison Square Garden for the first time since their respective trades, when the Ducks visit the Rangers in less than two weeks, on Dec. 15.
Thanks in no small part to Trouba and Kreider, the Ducks (17-10-1) are among the biggest surprises in the NHL this season, currently first in the Pacific Division. Trouba leads the Ducks with 51 blocked shots and is second with 62 hits. He also has 13 points (four goals, nine assists) and is averaging 21:59 in 28 games. Kreider tops the Ducks with six power-play goals in 24 games, is third with 13 goals, and tied for fifth with 19 points.
