2026 Rangers Report Card: Vincent Trocheck

This article is part of an ongoing series of Rangers Report Cards, grading the performance of each member of the 2025-26 New York Rangers. To view more report cards in this series, go here.

To read the Season Preview for Vincent Trocheck, go here.

Going into the season, it was very clear that the New York Rangers had plans to contend for a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs. A considerable part of head coach Mike Sullivan's plan was Vincent Trocheck. But, as the season went on, the veteran center was becoming increasingly less vital to the team's long-term plan. By the time the 2026 Milan Olympics rolled around, it was known the Blueshirts were looking to trade Trocheck.

With Trocheck's fate all but sealed, the 2025-26 season is likely to be the last time he would be seen in a Rangers uniform.

Expectations

For most of the 2025 offseason, there was a debate on how the Rangers should deploy their centers. The first option, which fit best for Trocheck's skill set, was playing J.T. Miller as the first line center, Mika Zibanejad centering the second line, and Trocheck as the team's third line center. Being on the third line would have allowed Trocheck to get more favorable matchups and could have let the Rangers deploy him more situationally and utilize his abilities at the face-off circle.

Instead, the team went another way, which consisted of playing Zibanejad on the wing and letting Trocheck anchor the second line. By doing this, the Rangers were showing their belief in Trocheck to play a strong two-way game, and had faith in him to handle other top-six matchups. Trocheck also started the season on the top power play unit and as a penalty killer. In short, the Rangers were asking a lot of Vincent Trocheck.

Perfromance

67 GP | 16 G | 37 A | 53 P | -16 | 114 SOG | 64 PIM

While Trocheck did have his lowest point total as a Ranger, it was also the first time he didn't play all 82 regular season games. Trocheck missed 15 games this season due to a combination of a bacterial lung infection and being held out ahead of the trade deadline. Trocheck did average 0.79 points per game this season, the second highest during his tenure with the Blueshirts, and the fourth highest of his career. Even though he is not a premium scorer, he has continued to display an ability to get involved offensively.

Of Trocheck's 53 points, he tallied 16 of them while on the power play, where Evolving Hockey credited him with a Regularized Adjusted Plus-Minus (RAPM) goals for per 60 (GF/60) of 1.19, the highest among all Rangers. Unfortunately, the underlying numbers aren't as good, where he is credited with only 0.494 RAPM xGF/60. While it is still strong, it is nowhere near as strong as the on-ice production is not sustainable. A similar story is painted when discussing Trocheck's offensive play at even strength.

By the end of the season, Trocheck had the fourth highest RAPM GF/60 at even strength among Rangers, at 0.069. This also lines up with him having the fourth most even strength points on the team, despite missing time. However, his RAPM xGF/60 of -0.085 was the third lowest among forwards. Despite the underlying statistics contradicting his on-ice production, his offensive skill set is still serviceable, and on a team where he may be asked to do less offensively, they may improve.

On the other end of things is where the concern for Trocheck grows for me. Trocheck has been known for playing a strong defensive game, and that was not the case this past season. While at even strength, he recorded a 0.138 RAPM xGA/60, the highest among Blueshirts forwards and the highest during his career in New York City. These struggles translated to the penalty kill, where he recorded an RAPM xGA/60 of .317. This was one of the rare times his underlying numbers were better than his on-ice production, but it was still underwhelming.

The Rangers were counting on Trocheck's game, and it may not have shown up in Madison Square Garden, but it did in Milan. When representing Team USA at the 2026 Milan Olympics, Trocheck took on a fourth-line role and served as a penalty killer along with J.T. Miller. Over six games, he recorded three assists and was one of the driving forces behind a short-handed unit that killed off 18 of 18 penalties, including a 5-on-3 in the gold medal game against Team Canada.

Unfortunately, there aren't underlying statistics to help back this up. But watching the games in Milan, it was noticeable that his play was much better, and the defensive aspect of his game is still there. When he was selected for the Olympic roster, it was with one job in mind. And on the biggest stage in the world, he did just that.

Grades

Author's Grade: C+

Banter Consensus: C

Final Evaluation

Even though Trocheck may have run his course in the Big Apple, he is still a very solid center, and in a better situation, he has the opportunity to solidify a team down the middle. While many thought he would be gone at the deadline, general manager Chris Drury elected to hold onto him in hopes of a larger return this offseason. I believe that move will pay off for Drury, as the rumored interest in Trocheck has grown.

While the past two seasons have not been what fans have hoped for, Trocheck did have a career year playing with Artemi Panarin during the 2023-24 season and helped the Rangers win the Presidents' Trophy. Trocheck also scored the game-winning goal in double overtime of game two against the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of that season's playoffs. It may not have ended on the best note, but Trocheck did create lasting memories for fans in New York and was among their favorites during his time with the team.