Defenseman Jacob Trouba named next Rangers captain

Back in May, New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba generated headlines and controversy for a high hit he delivered to Pittsburgh Penguins superstar captain Sidney Crosby that changed the first round playoff series the Rangers ultimately won in seven games. 

Trouba wasn't penalized or otherwise punished for that blow and was in the news on Tuesday for a much different reason. 

Per the NHL's official website, the Rangers officially named Trouba their captain on Tuesday. The 28-year-old somewhat ironically becomes the 28th player to be named captain in franchise history. As noted by The Athletic, Trouba was one of six alternate captains on the Rangers last season and is now the club's first captain since defenseman Ryan McDonagh held the honor from 2014 to 2018 before he was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning in February 2018. 

"It's a huge honor and something that means something, especially here in this organization with the history and the past players that have been captain before me," Trouba remarked for the media release. "As a kid, I grew up watching [Brian] Leetch and Messier, [Chris] Drury and [Jaromir] Jagr. ... You come here and you learn more about the history of the guys that were before them. You see pictures, you see jerseys around this place.

"It's now my turn to carry that legacy on for those guys."

Trouba, who initially joined the Rangers via a trade from the Winnipeg Jets in June 2019, finished the 2021-22 regular season with NHL career highs of 11 goals and a plus-25 rating. He also contributed 28 assists over 81 games and then added one goal and four assists across 20 playoff contests.