Jacob Trouba says there's 'no animosity' between him and Rangers after offseason trade talks
GREENBURGH – On the first day of training camp, Rangers captain Jacob Trouba declared that he was happy to be back with the Blueshirts, and insisted he didn’t take it personally that the team looked into trading him this summer, once the full no-move clause in his contract became a modified no-trade clause.
“I don't think there's any animosity throughout the whole thing,’’ Trouba said. “Per my contract, I had owed a list [of 15 teams to which he could not be traded] and on June 30 I knew that was coming. I think that's pretty standard, a part of contracts when a no-trade list has to be submitted.’’
What Trouba didn’t appreciate was reading stories in which his wife was identified as the reason he didn’t want to be traded away from New York. Although he was professional in talking to the group of reporters that surrounded him, he seemed to show a little resentment toward the local media.
“I'd love to find someone to verify a ‘source,’ ’’ he said. “That would be nice. But that's not the standard, I guess, in the media.’’
While he admitted he loves living in New York and didn’t want to be traded, he said his feelings weren’t hurt by the Rangers’ efforts to move him, and he didn’t need to have any conversations with management to smooth things over or mend any fences.
Rangers general manager Chris Drury said Tuesday that he and Trouba talk a lot, “as GM and captain should,’’ and they had “a number of different conversations over the course of the summer on a lot of different things.
“He is very clear as to where he stands with me and what I think of him as a player and a leader,’’ Drury said, “and I think he’s done a real good job here as a captain.’’
Trouba, who struggled in the playoffs, had suffered a broken foot near the end of the regular season. But he said he is fully healthy now and feels good entering training camp.
And with there potentially being as few as two new faces in the lineup on opening night, he talked about this being “probably the last crack [at winning a Stanley Cup] for this core.’’ Due to salary cap concerns, the group likely will need to undergo significant changes before next season.
First look at Smith
As expected, new forward Reilly Smith played mostly on the right of center Mika Zibanejad and left wing Chris Kreider on the first day.
“They're two unbelievable players,’’ Smith said. “Their body of work over their career speaks for itself … [But] whether it's those two guys or anyone else, I'm going to try to do my best to complement their game.’’
Quick misses practice
Goaltender Jonathan Quick did not practice – the Rangers said he was out due to “maintenance’’ reasons. Forward Adam Erne, who is in camp on a tryout basis, did not practice because of illness.
Rempe has early jump
Forward Matt Rempe, who spent much of the summer in Connecticut, power skating and working out with Kreider and skills coach Christian Hmura, was noticeable in leading the pack in conditioning sprints with the early morning group.
“I put in a lot of work [over the whole summer],’’ Rempe said. “I was afraid of letting anyone down … and so I put in a lot of the work and I want to showcase that.’’
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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