D corps whole again after rare Trouba suspension
Jacob Trouba tried to plead his case.
In his NHL Department of Player Safety hearing, Trouba claimed that he didn’t know where Golden Knights forward Pavel Dorofeyev was during the Rangers’ Jan. 26 loss, since the Blueshirts’ defenseman had turned toward the corner and wasn’t aware of anyone hovering behind him.
“They thought differently, I guess,” Trouba said.
He’ll return to the Rangers’ lineup Wednesday against the Lightning following a two-game suspension for elbowing, allowing the Blueshirts to have their defensive pairings intact again. And he’s avoided trying to decipher why he was suspended or comparing his incident to others around the league.
“That’s all kind of out of my control,” Trouba said. “I say my peace in the hearing and that’s all I can really do. So yeah, don’t really dwell on it or anything. Just gonna keep playing hockey.”
For Trouba, that revolves around a physical style. It’s led to crushing hits and two fines in the past. But this instance — when he knocked Dorofeyev to the ice in the moments following a faceoff — marked Trouba’s first suspension since February 2017, when a hit to Mark Stone’s head cost him two games.
The Rangers mostly relied on Zac
Jones to fill Trouba’s spot in the lineup, while Connor Mackey also skated when Ryan Lindgren missed their Jan. 27 win due to an upperbody injury. Both Jones and Mackey sparked that win against the Senators before the All-Star break. Jones played a “heck of a game” Monday, too, Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette said postgame.
But having Trouba back from his extended All-Star break will provide a sense of normalcy for the Rangers.
“He plays a hard brand of hockey, and he’s the captain of this team,” Laviolette said. “When you’re missing a piece like that, it’s tough . ... I think our guys did a good job of covering for him, but it’s nice to have him back.”
➤ The Rangers want to keep their first-round pick in the 2024 draft so that the team owned by James Dolan can participate in the “spotlight” of the draft at the Sphere — also owned by Dolan — in Las Vegas, according to a report from TSN.
That could reportedly prevent them from parting with the pick ahead of the trade deadline, even with the Blueshirts wanting to acquire a forward.
“Doesn’t mean that GM Chris Drury can’t use another firstround pick, maybe in 2025 or acquire one,” TSN’s Darren Dreger said during a segment. “But the Rangers want to be part of the spectacle in Vegas.”
Dreger also reported that the Rangers made an offer to acquire Flames forward Elias Lindholm before he was traded to the Canucks.
➤ Center Nick Bonino, originally waived Jan. 25, was placed on unconditional waivers after deciding over the All-Star break that he didn’t want to report to AHL Hartford, according to The Post’s Mollie Walker and Larry Brooks. He’ll be released after clearing waivers.
The Athletic reported that there “have been inquiries” from other NHL teams that Bonino, 35, could consider.