Media Bytes: Trocheck Fallout, No Movement for the No-Moves, Drafting Blame Game
In this edition of Media Bytes, the Trocheck trade picture gets clearer, Rangers veterans weigh their future in New York, and the blame game between management and players takes center stage.
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Tro-Checking Out?
1. Vincent Trocheck's playful stunt during Olympic team photos might've ruffled some feathers in New York, but the hosts of Tri-State Hockey weren't buying the outrage. All three pushed back on the idea that Trocheck did anything wrong, saying the so-called "controversy" was overblown—if it was even a controversy at all.
"Let him have some fun. He didn't do anything wrong there," Mike Rupp said to kick things off. "Maybe it's the Minnesota Wild, maybe it's not, but I think people took it a little too seriously."
Jonny Lazarus echoed that point, noting that Trocheck pulled the stunt right in front of Chris Drury and Mike Sullivan—a pretty clear sign this wasn't a big deal behind the scenes.
Arthur Staple took it a step further, framing the moment in the bigger picture of Trocheck's situation.
"He knows he's getting traded. Everybody knows he's getting traded," Staple said. "He's mentally preparing for this chapter of his career to end, which sucks. It sucks for all of them, and it especially sucks for him—one of the first big free-agent signings that Chris Drury made."
2. Vince Mercogliano added more on the Trocheck front in Thursday's episode of The Flying V. Answering a listener question, Mercogliano laid out what many around the league expect the framework of a Trocheck trade to look like once the trade freeze lifts after the Olympic break.
"Trocheck is very sought after. He's going to be a really valuable piece at this year's trade deadline," Mercogliano said. "I'm expecting the Rangers to get something significant back. I think the package is likely three or four pieces. That probably includes a first-round pick, plus a prospect in the Charlie Stramel or Liam Greentree tier—not a top-50 guy for most evaluators, but someone in the top-100 range. Then you're talking about additional secondary pieces as well. I also think they could get a defenseman back—not a high-end name, but someone with upside they feel they can develop."
Mercogliano added that the return could also include one or two mid-round picks, and that no matter the final configuration, he expects it to be a layered package.
"That's the consensus among the people I talk to."
