New York Rangers President and General Manager Chris Drury announced this morning that defenseman Jacob Trouba has been named the 28th captain in franchise history.
The New York Rangers have named defenseman Jacob Trouba captain in a Tuesday morning announcement.
“Since he joined the Rangers, Jacob has consistently displayed all of the qualities we want in a leader on and off the ice,” Drury said. As we look to take the next step as an organization, he is a role model for all of our players to follow and the perfect choice to be our captain.”
Trouba, 28, will be the Rangers’ first captain since Ryan McDonagh (2014-15 – 2017-18) and becomes the 12th defenseman in team history to be named captain. The Rochester, Michigan native is the fourth straight American-born skater the Rangers have selected as captain. The Rangers are the first franchise in NHL history to have four consecutive full-time American-born captains (Trouba, McDonagh, Callahan, Drury). In addition, Trouba is one of three defensemen in the NHL to currently hold the captaincy for their respective teams, joining Minnesota’s Jared Spurgeon and Nashville’s Roman Josi.
Head coach Gerard Gallant was impressed with Trouba from the moment he arrived last season after replacing David Quinn,
“Right away when I got here, it was clear that Jacob had a certain presence in the locker room and among his teammates that exemplify what you need out of a captain. With where our team is at and where we want to be, he is the right person to lead us there.”
Trouba works hard on and off the ice. Last season, the 6-3, 208-pounder scored a career-high 11 goals and notched 28 assists for 39 points in 81 games, as well as posting a career-high plus-25 rating. His 11 goals were tied with Adam Fox for the most among Rangers defensemen in 2021-22. Trouba tallied 177 blocked shots last year, the second most in the NHL, to go along with his 207 hits. He was the only player in the NHL in 2021-22 to record both 175-plus blocked shots and 200-plus hits and was the first Ranger since Dan Girardi in 2014-15 to notch both in the same season.
His support of the Garden of Dreams Foundation (GDF) and Junior Rangers Youth Hockey along with attending hockey clinics and partaking in the Make-A-Wish program has made him a vital representative of the hockey community.
Last season, the 6-3, 208-pounder scored a career-high 11 goals and notched 28 assists for 39 points in 81 games, as well as posting a career-high plus-25 rating. His 11 goals were tied with Adam Fox for the most among Rangers defensemen in 2021-22. Trouba tallied 177 blocked shots last year, the second most in the NHL, to go along with his 207 hits. He was the only player in the NHL in 2021-22 to record both 175-plus blocked shots and 200-plus hits and was the first Ranger since Dan Girardi in 2014-15 to notch both in the same season.
Trouba was acquired by the Rangers from Winnipeg on June 17, 2019. The Jets originally selected Trouba in the first round, ninth overall, of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.
Note:
The Rangers will have a press conference today with Jacob Trouba, Chris Drury, and Gerard Gallant at 3:00 p.m. The press conference will air live on MSG Network. In addition, Rangers fans can also watch the press conference on the Rangers’ Twitter account, YouTube channel, website, and MSGGo app.