ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The Anaheim Ducks acquired New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba on Friday in exchange for defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a conditional fourth-round pick in 2025.

The trade ends Trouba’s five-year tenure with the Rangers, who have lost six of their last seven games. The 30-year-old defenseman joined the Rangers in a trade with Winnipeg in 2019 and became captain of New York ahead of the 2022-23 season.

Trouba was considered one of the NHL’s best checking defensemen at the peak of his talent. He has six assists in 23 games this year while struggling offensively to reach the level of his best seasons, including a career-best 50 points with Winnipeg in the 2018-19 season.

Trouba has been the subject of trade rumors since the summer, while New York general manager Chris Drury didn’t try to hide his desire to reboot the roster, but Trouba has a robust no-trade clause. He’s just finishing the sixth season of a seven-year, $56 million contract, and his hefty contract has been a hindrance to movement.

“I would like to sincerely thank Jacob for his contributions to the Rangers and our community,” Drury said in a statement. “Jacob was a role model for our organization on and off the ice and has contributed significantly to our success in recent years. … He has demonstrated courage, tenacity and outstanding leadership, and we cannot thank Jacob enough for everything he has done for the Rangers.”

Jacob Trouba (8) of the New York Rangers tries to defend against Connor McDavid (97) of the Edmonton Oilers during NHL game two in Edmonton on Saturday, November 23, 2024. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/JASON FRANSON

The Ducks can accept the final 1 1/2 years of Trouba’s contract because they have one of the NHL’s lowest payrolls and plenty of salary cap space after general manager Pat Verbeek failed to land a top free agent last summer.

Trouba will immediately be a key player on the blue line for the Ducks, who are in last place in the Pacific Division. He will also play alongside Anaheim forwards Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano, his Rangers teammates on the club’s road to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2022.

“Jacob is a highly valued player in this league whose character and leadership skills on and off the ice are unmatched,” Verbeek said. “We believe Jacob will play in this league for many years to come and hope he plays a big part in our future success. It’s rare that you can get a player with Jacob’s experience, stature and skill set. On the ice, he works every shift, leads by example and is a presence on the blue line every night.”

The Ducks’ defensemen include captain Radko Gudas, veteran Cam Fowler, free agent signing Brian Dumoulin and promising young players Olen Zellweger and Pavel Mintyukov. Anaheim has been solid defensively this season, allowing just 2.96 goals per game after allowing 3.57 last season, but once again struggled offensively.

Vaakanainen has not played for Anaheim since November 13th due to an upper body injury. The veteran played in 68 games for the Ducks last season and scored one goal, but suffered frequent injuries during his career with Boston and Anaheim.

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This story has been corrected to show the Rangers have lost six of their last seven games, not seven games in a row.

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