Trade Between the New York Rangers and the Anaheim Ducks Officially Completed After Key Condition Met

The New York Rangers have had a disaster of a season, much to the surprise of many after they looked like Stanley Cup contenders last year.

Things derailed very quickly for the club as they got off to a slow start, and things only got worse from there.

By December the team was in free fall and general manager Chris Drury was desperate to shake things up, and shake them up he did.

After weeks of rumors and speculation surrounding the team, then captain Jacob Trouba was traded to the Anaheim Ducks.

The move was considered highly controversial, especially since Trouba did not want to leave the team, but reportedly, Drury threatened to place him on waivers if he did not comply.

In return for Trouba, the Rangers received defenseman Urho Vaakaninen and a conditional fourth round pick.

That condition is that it would be the lower of two 4th round picks the Ducks own this year, their own and Detroit's.

With the regular season winding to a close, it has now been confirmed that Detroit will finish above the Ducks in the standings, and so the Rangers will receive Detroit's 4th round selection in the 2025 NHL draft.

At that point in the draft, this condition was largely meaningless, but this is still a small win for the Ducks, who will retain their own 4th round pick, which admittedly will be close to the end of the 3rd round.

That being said, the organization must have been hoping to flip Trouba at the trade deadline for additional assets, but his play this season did not warrant that.

Trouba has just 1 goal and 8 points in 50 games since joining the Ducks, giving him 14 points in 74 games on the season.

It should be interesting to see what kind of offers he gets in free agency this summer as the once highly-touted blueliner has seemingly fallen off a cliff.