Should the Detroit Red Wings look to acquire Jacob Trouba?

The Detroit Red Wings seem to be in serious conversations with the New York Rangers for their captain, Jacob Trouba. The 30-year-old right-handed defenseman scored three goals and 19 assists for 22 points in the 2023-24 season, as well as one goal and six assists for seven points in 16 playoff games.

While the prospect of getting Jacob Trouba is a curious one, it's also not nearly as bad as some may think. He's still a stable right-handed defenseman who will likely get more favorable matchups with the Red Wings than he did with the Rangers.

Sure, he comes with a good amount of baggage, but between his cap hit and his on-ice "antics," the question is worth asking nonetheless.

Is Jacob Trouba worth it?

This is an interesting question because whether Trouba is worth it or not is based on what the deal entails. On his own, Trouba is not an $8 million player. Not even close. However if Detroit were to use this opportunity to potentially move a contract out or another draft pick or two.

If Steve Yzerman and the Red Wings are willing to take on Trouba's full cap hit of $8 million, the best course of action is to move out a contract such as Robby Fabbri, Justin Holl, or Olli Maatta and probably a second—or third-round pick in either this year's or next year's draft.

Another option that has been reported is that the Rangers are open to retaining $2.5 million (about 30%) of his contract, bringing the expected return down but still allowing the Red Wings to come out with something. Having Trouba at $5.5 Million is a good deal and would work well with either Johansson or Edvinsson.

What would Jacob Trouba provide to the Detroit Red Wings?

Trouba will bring a much-needed deterrent that the Red Wings desperately need. While I don't agree at all with how he brings that deterrent, it's there nonetheless and would be a great asset for the Red Wings to have.

He also brings baggage with him apart from his cap hit. As I mentioned, the deterrent he brings to the Red Wings is due to his unfortunate record of high and "dirty" hits on other players. In the words of Brad Krysko from the Winged Wheel Podcast, "I'm not pro-brain injury," so hopefully, Trouba can learn to use his shoulder more than his elbow.

Some also have issues with his on-ice play. While he didn't have a particularly great year this season, a lot of that can be attributed to him getting more or less the "Mo Seider treatment," spending a lot of time defending against teams' top lines and players more often than not. While he can do fairly well in that role, it's not within the scope of his abilities to do that every game.

Putting him on the second pairing with Simon Edvinsson seems like the most likely play, but given how well Edvinsson and Petry played together toward the end of last season, I wouldn't be surprised if he was on the third pairing with Albert Johansson or Olli Maatta (if he's not traded).