Jacob Trouba

Jacob Ryan Trouba (born February 26, 1994) is an American professional ice hockey player who is a defenseman for the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Trouba was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in the first round, ninth overall, of the 2012 NHL entry draft. Trouba played the first six years of his career in Winnipeg before he was traded to the New York Rangers in 2019. Trouba spent five seasons with the Rangers including two and a half seasons as captain before his trade to the Anaheim Ducks in 2024.

Playing career Amateur As a youth, Trouba played in the 2007 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Detroit Compuware minor ice hockey team. He later played two seasons with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program in the United States Hockey League (USHL) and at several international tournaments. At the end of the season, Trouba was named a First Team All-American and was also honored as the Central Collegiate Hockey Association's (CCHA) Best Offensive Defenseman. He was also named first team All-CCHA and an All-CCHA Rookie. Trouba was also named as the team's Most Valuable Player and Best Defenseman. At the conclusion of his freshman campaign, Trouba announced he was leaving the team to begin his professional career.

Professional (2013–present) Winnipeg Jets (2013–2019)

Trouba was selected by the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL) in the first round, ninth overall, of the 2012 NHL entry draft. He signed an entry-level contract with the Jets on April 2, 2013. On October 1, Trouba played his first career NHL game for the Jets, scoring his first NHL goal against Devan Dubnyk of the Edmonton Oilers. He also added an assist in the game and was named the game's first star. During his rookie season in 2013–14, Trouba missed over a month of action after he was injured in his eighth game when he fell into the boards after missing a bodycheck against the St. Louis Blues. He remained upbeat in the aftermath of his injury, updating fans on Twitter by saying, "If you were wondering, the boards are not edible. I'll be back soon." He appeared in 65 games with the Jets that season, scoring ten goals and 19 assists for 29 points. In the 2014–15 season, he played in 65 games with Winnipeg, marking seven goals and 22 points. However, later that month on December 16, he suffered an upper body injury that kept him out until February 2015. The Jets made the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs and Trouba made his NHL playoff debut on April 16 in Game 1 of the first round series versus the Anaheim Ducks. The Jets lost the game, but Trouba recorded his first NHL playoff point assisting on Adam Lowry's first period goal. The Jets were eliminated by the Ducks in four games, during which Trouba played with a broken hand. In the four games, he recorded two assists. However, on November 7, he agreed to a two-year, $6 million contract extension with the Jets, having missed the first 13 games of the 2016–17 season. Had he not signed by December 1, he would not have been eligible to play in the NHL for the rest of the season. He was a healthy scratch for the first two games after signing before making his season debut on November 11 against the Colorado Avalanche. He recorded a multi-goal game on April 6, scoring two against the Columbus Blue Jackets in a 5–4 victory.

In the 2017–18 season, Trouba appeared in 55 games, scoring three goals and 24 points. He returned to the lineup on March 15 against the Chicago Blackhawks, but in the next game against the Dallas Stars on March 18, he suffered a concussion after being hit by Jamie Benn. He returned to the lineup on March 31 as the Jets clinched a spot in the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs. He appeared in 17 playoff games, scoring two goals and three points. Following the Jets' successful 2018 playoffs in which the team reached the Conference finals for the first time in franchise history, Trouba filed for salary arbitration. On July 22, he was awarded a one-year, $5.5 million extension with the Jets.

Trouba finished the 2018–19 season having played in all 82 games, scoring eight goals and 50 points. On October 20, he recorded a three-point game, registering three assists in a 5–3 victory over the Arizona Coyotes. He added a second three-point game on January 8, 2019, scoring a goal and adding two assists in a 7–4 win over the Colorado Avalanche. The Jets secured their spot in the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs and in the first round, faced the St. Louis Blues. Trouba played in all six games in the series, marking one assist, as the Blues eliminated the Jets. On June 17, 2019, Trouba was traded by the Jets to the New York Rangers in exchange for defenseman Neal Pionk and New York's first-round pick in the 2019 NHL entry draft, which had been previously acquired by the Rangers in exchange for the Jets receiving Kevin Hayes. On July 19, the Rangers signed Trouba to a seven-year, $56 million free-agent contract worth an average annual value of $8 million. Trouba scored his first goal for the Rangers, as well as two assists, during the 2019–20 season opener on October 3 against his former team, the Winnipeg Jets. Trouba tied a career-high in points, and he became the first defenseman to register three points in a Rangers debut. He played in 70 games with the Rangers, scoring seven goals and 27 points before the NHL suspended the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic on March 12, 2020. When play resumed for the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Rangers faced the Carolina Hurricanes in the best-of-five qualifying round. Trouba played in all three games, registering one assist, as the Hurricanes swept the Rangers. The following season in 2021–22 played in 81 games, scoring 11 goals and 39 points. The Rangers went on a deep run in the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs, advancing to the Eastern Conference finals, but ultimately lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games. Trouba appeared in 20 playoff games, scoring one goal and five points.

During the 2022–23 season, during a 5-2 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks at home on December 3, Trouba was involved in two separate on-ice incidents. In the first period, he fought Jujhar Khaira, whom he had concussed and knocked unconscious with an open-ice hit in the last game between the Rangers and Blackhawks the previous season. Then, in the second period, with the Blackhawks leading 3–0, Trouba delivered an open-ice hit to Andreas Athanasiou, inciting a line brawl that included a fight between Trouba and Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews. After the brawl, Trouba yelled at and threw his helmet towards the Rangers bench. The incident and game was seen as a turning point in the Rangers season, who entering the game, had a record of 11 wins, 10 losses and 5 overtime losses. After the incident, the team won 36 games, lost 12 and a further 8 in overtime. He appeared in all 82 games for the Rangers that season, scoring eight goals and 30 points. Trouba appeared in all seven games, going scoreless. On November 25, he was fined $5,000 for a high-sticking infraction against Trent Frederic of the Boston Bruins. He was also suspended for two games on January 24, 2024, for elbowing Vegas Golden Knights' forward Pavel Dorofeyev. He finished the season having appeared in 69 games, scoring three goals and 22 points. During the series, Trouba was fined $5,000 for elbowing Evan Rodrigues in Game 3. Trouba scored one goal and seven points in 16 playoff games. Despite the rumours, he opened the 2024–25 season with the Rangers and appeared in 24 games, registering six assists. On December 6, with his future with the Rangers clouded and the team still trying to move him off the roster, it was revealed that Trouba would be held out of the lineup for that evening's game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The team reportedly had a number of suitors interested in Trouba, but Trouba was not willing to waive his no-trade clause to go to them. He was told that he would be placed on waivers at 2 p.m. that day if he did not accept a trade, which would have allowed any team to claim Trouba for free, regardless of it they were on his no-trade list or not. The way in which Rangers' management had handled the Trouba situation was not well received by New York players and reportedly was one of the factors which affected the team's play during the 2024–25 season.

Anaheim Ducks (2024–2026) Faced with the potential of being placed on waivers, Trouba accepted a trade to the Anaheim Ducks on December 6, with the Rangers receiving defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a 2025 fourth-round pick from Anaheim. He made his Ducks debut on December 9 against the Montreal Canadiens. Trouba was paired with Cam Fowler and played well. However, the Ducks lost the game in the shootout 3–2.

San Jose Sharks (2026–present) As a free agent from the Ducks, Trouba was signed to a four-year, $33 million contract with the San Jose Sharks on July 1, 2026.

International play

Trouba spent much of his amateur career playing for the U.S. National Team Development Program in the USHL and at several international tournaments. He represented his country at two World Under-18 Championships, one World Junior Championships and one World Senior Championship. In 2011 and 2012, Trouba captured gold medals with the U.S. at the World Under-18 Championships.

Trouba was the youngest player on the American team at the 2012 World Junior Championship. In 2013, he represented the United States at both the junior and senior levels, capturing gold and bronze medals, respectively. On June 28, 2020, he posted on Instagram that he married his long-time girlfriend, Kelly Tyson.

Trouba is also a visual artist, sharing his first paintings on Instagram in mid 2023. Trouba creates his works with artist Michael Geschwer by skating into blank canvases while wearing full hockey gear coated in paint. He held his first exhibition from August 1 through August 23, 2024, at Harper's Gallery in New York City.

In September 2017, Trouba's Jets' teammate Blake Wheeler criticized then-U.S. president Donald Trump's comments on National Football League players kneeling during the national anthem. Trouba supported Wheeler and stated, "It takes a lot of courage to stand up to that, so I think it's courageous what Blake did and what a lot of athletes are doing." Furthermore, Trouba said that sports had become more political than at the start of his career "but Donald Trump also wasn't president at that point."

In 2024 Trouba joined Hockey Fights Cancer as the face of their "Get Body Checked Against Cancer" campaign, playing on his notoriety for body checks.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2011 United States U17 5 2 7 9 10 2011 United States U18 6 1 0 1 0 2012 United States WJC 7th 6 0 2 2 0 2012 United States U18 6 1 2 3 8 2013 United States WJC 7 4 5 9 10 2013 United States WC 7 1 2 3 2 2014 United States WC 6th 4 2 1 3 8 2016 Team North America WCH 5th 2 0 0 0 0 2017 United States WC 5th 8 1 2 3 2 Junior totals 30 8 16 24 28 Senior totals 21 4 5 9 12

Awards and honors Award Year RefUSHL All-Star Game 2011–12 College All-CCHA Rookie Team 2012–13 All-CCHA Best Offensive Defenseman 2012–13 All-CCHA First Team 2012–13 AHCA West First-Team All-American 2012–13 CCHA All-Tournament Team 2013 NHL Mark Messier Leadership Award 2023–24 International World Junior Championships Top 3 Player on Team 2013 World Junior Championships All-Star Team 2013 World Junior Championships Best Defenseman 2013 New York Rangers Mr. Ranger Award 2023