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How Rangers’ Vincent Trocheck increased his trade value at Olympics
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- How Rangers’ Vincent Trocheck increased his trade value at Olympics
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There were cynics that saw J.T. Miller and Vincent Trocheck 's names on the United States Olympic roster and thought neither belonged, and that the U.S. could never beat Canada nor win a gold medal with them in the lineup ahead of other star players left off the team.
Yet, Trocheck especially continued to do what he has throughout his NHL career, including the past four seasons with the New York Rangers: defy expectations by perfectly playing his role. And as a result, Trocheck and Miller helped the United States capture that elusive Olympic gold medal.
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Trocheck came to the Milan-Cortina Games as the United States' 13th dressed forward. Yet the 32-year-old center was so trusted as both a penalty killer and face-off specialist that he found himself on the ice in overtime of the gold-medal game Sunday — taking a key defensive-zone face-off not long before Jack Hughes scored the Golden Goal in a 2-1 victory over Canada.
So it's safe to say Trocheck earned a postgame beverage Sunday, after the Rangers center went viral for telling his family in the crowd that he planned to party hard in his last night in Northern Italy.
The case can be made that Trocheck isn't the top-tier star that, say, Cole Caufield or Jason Robertson is. But those highly-skilled players remained at home because Team USA coach Mike Sullivan and general manager Bill Guerin valued the intangibles and attention to detail Trocheck brought to the table. The star-laden U.S. roster had enough stars. It needed others to fill key roles.
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Enter Trocheck, who stepped up his game from last year's 4 Nations Faceoff and undoubtedly had an impact on the U.S. winning Olympic gold for the first time since the Miracle on Ice 46 years ago.
However, his selfless-yet-effective performance against Canada, and throughout the tournament, may just hasten his departure from the retooling Rangers when he returns to North America.
Vincent Trocheck raises trade value for Rangers after helping United States win gold medal at Olympics
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Trocheck is a seven-time 20-goal scorer in the NHL, and two years removed from an NHL career-high 77-point season. He's also year-in and year-out one of the best face-off men in the League, and a true 200-foot player.
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He's not a superstar, but he's been an All-Star. And if the Rangers weren't in a retool and about to miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second straight season, there's no way they'd consider moving Trocheck ahead of the March 6 NHL Trade Deadline.
But the Rangers are last in the Eastern Conference, and Trocheck is their most intriguing trade chip. Even more so after he burnished his big-game resume by checking his ego, accepting a fourth-line role, and excelling as key penalty killer to help Team USA win gold in Milan.
He has 17 goals and 37 points in 56 NHL postseason games, including a memorable game-winning goal in double overtime in Game 2 of the second round series against his former team, the Carolina Hurricanes, in 2024. Now he has an Olympic gold medal on top of that.
Teams that want to win championships, want winners on their roster. That spikes a players value, especially ahead of the trade deadline leading into the playoffs.
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Trocheck's production and leadership would be valuable for the Rangers to retain amid their youth movement. But it's also appealing to a young team looking for a second- or third-line center — like the Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blues Jackets or Utah Mammoth — that needs equal parts grit, professionalism, and veteran leadership to fortify a young, skilled roster.
And teams that are even closer to winning the Stanley Cup and need a 2C or 3C with Trocheck's vast skillset? Yeah, there are plenty of those, too, including the Colorado Avalanche, Los Angeles Kings, and Carolina Hurricanes (ironically, Trocheck's previous team before joining the Rangers).
The more teams interested in a player of Trocheck's caliber, the higher the price Rangers GM Chris Drury can ask for in return, especially since Trocheck has three more years on his contract at a reasonable $5.625 million per season .
So, there were already many teams lining up to bid for Trocheck ahead of the trade deadline. Now the Rangers asking price should be even higher, which is vital for the retool considering how many holes within the organizational depth chart need to be filled.
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Rangers' Vincent Trocheck excelled at Olympics winning face-offs, killing penalties
Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
The analytics crowd will tell you face-offs don't matter. Yet, face-offs don't matter until they do — namely in overtime when possession means everything.
Do you know whom Sullivan trusted to take the opening draw in overtime against Sweden in the quarterfinals? Trocheck. And he took another face-off in that game, too, before Quinn Hughes scored the overtime winner for the U.S.
And Trocheck was back out there again vs. Canada in OT in the gold medal game. Trocheck is a player a coach can trust, especially in the face-off circle.
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Trocheck rewarded Sullivan's trust in Milan, winning 66.7 percent of his face-offs, tied for second-best in the tournament with Gabriel Landeskog of Sweden.
Landeskog, a left wing by trade, took just 21 draws. Trocheck won 38, which was second-most on the United States behind only Auston Matthews, and his plus-19 face-offs won differential was second best in the Olympic tournament behind only Leon Draisaitl of Germany.
"The team was built with personality in mind," Sullivan told reporters after the gold-medal game. "There are whiskey drinkers and milk drinkers, and we got a lot of whiskey drinkers."
In other words, players willing to do the little things that win big games. Like Trocheck.
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His Olympic face-off win rate was a vast improvement from Trocheck's 46.7 percent face-off mark at 4 Nations and more like the 56.5 percent mark he's posted while winning the most draws (405) of any player on the Rangers this season.
In the gold-medal game, Trocheck held his own by winning six of 11 face-offs. He also helped the United States kill a 93-second 5-on-3 Canada power play in the second period. That was one of the most important moments in the U.S. victory.
It also speaks to another area where Trocheck excelled in Italy — as he also does with the Rangers. Trocheck paired with Miller as the top penalty-killing forwards for theses Olympic Games. The U.S. was a perfect 18-for-18 on the PK in this tournament.
There's another tournament that begins in mid April where Stanley Cup contenders also value having special teams stalwarts like Trocheck.
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"We heard all the talk, that we shouldn't be here," Trocheck said Sunday . "We were able to come here and we had a job to do, and it was to be good penalty kill guys, face-off guys, character guys. We took that role and we ran with it."
Drury should be selling that quote to all the Trocheck suitors out there. Trocheck's value may never be higher than right now. It feels like it's time to cash in for the Rangers.
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