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Trouba Demands Trade, Oilers A Good Fit

September 24, 2016, 8:03 PM ET [159 Comments]
Matt Henderson
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
As per Jacob Trouba’s agent Kurt Overhardt, the right-shot defender has requested a trade from the Winnipeg Jets so that he may continue playing the right side of the ice. The following is the statement made by the Trouba camp via Sportsnet.

Our client, Jacob Trouba, will not be attending the Winnipeg Jets NHL training camp. Since May, we have been working with the Jets management in an effort to facilitate a trade of Jacob’s rights. Both parties continue to work on this matter.

There has been no negotiation regarding the terms of a contract between our client and the Jets over the course of the last several months. The situation is not about money; it is solely about our client having the opportunity to realize his potential as a right shot NHL defenseman.

To the Jets credit, the club has two outstanding right shot veteran defensemen and our client simply wants the opportunity to have a greater role. As a consequence of the Jets depth on the right side, we believe it is in both parties’ best interest to facilitate a mutually advantageous trade.

Our client has nothing but respect for the people and City of Winnipeg, the Winnipeg Jets, its fans, management and ownership - our desire to get him moved has everything to do with opportunity. We will continue to work with the Jets in good faith to achieve this end.


There is no question that the Oilers are a team that stands out as a natural fit for the young defender. Despite the addition of Larsson, Edmonton is questionable down the right side after the Swede. After this Fall the Oiler connections to Trouba are many. He was selected by Edmonton's General Manager to play for Team North America, was coached by Edmonton's Head Coach Todd McLellan, and played with Oiler centermen Nugent-Hopkins and McDavid at the World Cup of Hockey. He would almost certainly make the 2nd pair better than Mark Fayne. This could mean an Oiler blueline consisting of:

Klefbom Larsson
Sekera Trouba
Nurse Davidson

It’s not as if Trouba lit the world on fire last season with just 21 points in 81 games, but he is still a developing player at just 22 years of age and the Oilers could secure the young blueliner a larger role than the Jets. Winnipeg has Byfuglien and Meyers slotted ahead of Trouba. I’m not convinced Larsson is better than Trouba and he would be the only one standing in his way on the right side of the Oiler defense.

The big concern with Trouba is the money. He’s reportedly asked for some huge dollars. The problem is that he hasn’t performed like a 6 million dollar defender, never mind one significantly higher than that. His shot attempts relative to teammates over the course of his Jets career has been positive, but not mind blowingly so. His offense has been OK, but not great. The best thing about him is that he’s been a quality defender from a young age.

Jacob Trouba wouldn’t fix a lot of Edmonton’s problems the way someone like Tyson Barrie would, but he would add another big, young, promising player who happens to play the exact position the Oilers lack the most. What would it take to make that deal happen?

Ask Jets fans and they will say it will cost the Oilers Nurse+ in order to get Trouba. Now that he’s publicly requested a trade I’m not sure. The Jets strike me as a pretty level headed organization in every aspect except their valuation of goaltenders so they just might wait this situation out. I would happily see the Oilers trade their 1st rounder for 2017 and a number of other assets before we get to robbing the already thin defense.

Ultimately, I don’t know what it takes to get Touba, but there’s no question the Oilers are a fit for opportunity and that is purely why the player requested the trade in the first place. We know Chiarelli isn’t afraid of trading huge assets. What is he capable of doing if he sets his sights on Trouba?

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