
The New York Rangers acquired a major addition earlier this off-season in Jacob Trouba from the Winnipeg Jets, and on Friday, they locked that new addition in. The Rangers gave the defenseman a seven-year contract that is worth $56 million. The 25-year-old is expected to take over as the leader in the Madison Square Garden blue line, and will be an $8 million hit to the team's salary cap. The Rangers welcomed Trouba to their future on Twitter Friday afternoon, this after they young star could not come to an agreement on a deal with his former team. It even went as far as him requesting a trade in 2016, which never happened, and he went on to a receive a one-year, $5.6 million arbitrary deal last summer.
Trouba was a first-round draft pick of the Jets in the 2012 NHL Draft, and is coming off a career season, as he set career highs with 50 points and 42 assists. He was acquired by the Rangers on the night of the NHL Draft, as New York sent Neal Pionk and the 20th overall pick of this year's draft to Winnipeg. Despite the young age, Trouba already has six years of NHL experience, recording 42 goals, 172 points, and a plus-37 rating.
There was also a swap of veterans in the NHL Friday night, as the Calgary Falmes acquired winger Milan Lucic from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for fellow winger James Neal. Lucic had to waive the no-movement clause in his contract to make this happen, as the Flames also received a third-round pick for the 2020 NHL Draft. This move comes just three years after Lucic signed a seven-year, $42 million free agent contract, and was suppose to partner with Connor McDavid in some major success. They haven't quite reached that potential as a team since then, as Lucic struggled with just 104 points in 243 games with Edmonton. He also had a 9.8 shooting percentage and has a $6 million cap hit through the 2023 season.
Neal and Lucic are both 31 years of age, and the former's big free agent contract was just signed last July. It was a five-year, $28.75 million deal, with an annual cap hit of $5.75 million. He spent just one season with Calgary, and it was a forgettable one, with just seven goals in 63 games played. This comes after he scored 20 or more goals in each of his first 10 NHL seasons, including helping the Las Vegas Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018. The point of this trade for both teams was to see if a new uniform and new home will rejuvenate their careers before it's too late.
Trouba was a first-round draft pick of the Jets in the 2012 NHL Draft, and is coming off a career season, as he set career highs with 50 points and 42 assists. He was acquired by the Rangers on the night of the NHL Draft, as New York sent Neal Pionk and the 20th overall pick of this year's draft to Winnipeg. Despite the young age, Trouba already has six years of NHL experience, recording 42 goals, 172 points, and a plus-37 rating.
There was also a swap of veterans in the NHL Friday night, as the Calgary Falmes acquired winger Milan Lucic from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for fellow winger James Neal. Lucic had to waive the no-movement clause in his contract to make this happen, as the Flames also received a third-round pick for the 2020 NHL Draft. This move comes just three years after Lucic signed a seven-year, $42 million free agent contract, and was suppose to partner with Connor McDavid in some major success. They haven't quite reached that potential as a team since then, as Lucic struggled with just 104 points in 243 games with Edmonton. He also had a 9.8 shooting percentage and has a $6 million cap hit through the 2023 season.
Neal and Lucic are both 31 years of age, and the former's big free agent contract was just signed last July. It was a five-year, $28.75 million deal, with an annual cap hit of $5.75 million. He spent just one season with Calgary, and it was a forgettable one, with just seven goals in 63 games played. This comes after he scored 20 or more goals in each of his first 10 NHL seasons, including helping the Las Vegas Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018. The point of this trade for both teams was to see if a new uniform and new home will rejuvenate their careers before it's too late.