While there is no doubt that New York Rangers fans are starting to get scared when it comes to being up three games to two over the Carolina Hurricanes heading into Thursday night’s Game 6 in Raleigh, there is one Rangers player who is not scared.
That would be team captain Jacob Trouba. Trouba is a fearless player who leads by example by sacrificing his body every night to block shots, throw out big hits, and even score a goal now and again.
Because of these things and what he does off the ice, the NHL announced on Tuesday, May 14 that Trouba won the Mark Messier Leadership Award. As stated on NHL.com, the award is “presented annually to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team on and off the ice, and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey.”
Trouba has been leading the Rangers both on and off the ice since the 2021-22 season, even though he was not named the official team captain until last season. He is a player who works hard, knows how to get his team going with a big hit, and is known to stick up for his teammates.
Off the ice, Trouba is involved with several community-related endeavors. According to NHL.com, he participates in the Rangers Youth Hockey Camp, founded the Trouba Creative Expressions Arts Program with his wife, Dr. Kelly Tyson-Trouba, and also works with the Garden of Dreams Foundation. Trouba has raised $160,000 for his foundation as well as the Garden of Dreams Foundation.
Trouba is also heavily involved in fighting against cancer programs. He is a part of the league’s and NHL Players’ Association’s Hockey Fights Cancer program while also getting his mom, Kristy, to be involved with AstraZeneca’s “Get Body Checked Against Cancer” initiative.
Simply put, Trouba is a walking definition of the word “leader”. Much like Messier did when he was a Blueshirt, Trouba is doing everything he can to lead this team to a Stanley Cup on the ice and do all the right things off the ice.
