Why Rangers star ‘thought I was dying’ early in season, also addresses uncertain future

But he struggled to produce for most of January, coinciding with a collective team-wide faceplant amid injury absences for Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin. The Rangers tumbled into the cellar of the Eastern Conference, where they finished with a 34-39-9 record and missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second straight season.

“I’m a competitive guy. I don’t like to lose. We’re not used to this situation, being out of the playoffs two years in a row. Not making the playoffs sucks,” Trocheck stated Friday.

Vincent Trocheck doesn’t ‘know what’s going to happen’ with his Rangers future uncertain

John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

With the Rangers in the midst of a retool, Trocheck’s future with the organization is in flux. Unlike many other veterans on the roster, Trocheck’s trade protection is limited (10 teams in 2026-27, six the following two years). And even though he’s a respected letter-wearing leader, a heart-and-soul fan favorite, Olympic gold medalist, and extremely valuable player who averages more than 20 minutes TOI per game, there’s a good chance the Rangers trade Trocheck this summer.

The things that make his so valuable to the Rangers, including his affordable salary-cap hit of $5.625 million that carries three more seasons, is what makes Trocheck so attractive to other teams. The Rangers already tried to move him before the March 6 NHL Trade Deadline, even scratching him for one game due to roster management reasons, but didn’t pull the trigger because general manager Chris Drury didn’t like the offers that came his way.

The Rangers want young, talented NHL players, or prospects on the verge of being NHL-ready. In a way, Trocheck is an extremely valuable piece to the retool, whether the Rangers keep him or, more likely, trade him to help build up their talent base and depth.

So, does Trocheck have any idea what the future holds for him?

“I don’t know what’s going to happen. We’ll see.”

And has he spoken with Drury about the topic?

“Yeah, I talked already to ‘Dru’ [Thursday], not really about that,” Trocheck shared. “We have a good line of communication. We’ll be in contact if anything’s going on.”

Trocheck reiterated what he said ahead of the trade deadline, that he wants to play for a team that has a serious chance to be a Stanley Cup contender. So, Drury and Co. must decide if the Rangers best chance to be a contender moving forward is with or without Trocheck.

We will find out this summer.

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