New York Rangers forward Vincent Trocheck has publicly denied reports that the team’s recent players-only meeting was aimed at criticizing general manager Chris Drury.
Trocheck, seemingly frustrated by the rumors, "requested to speak with reporters" following practice in Dallas, according to Peter Baugh of The Athletic, to clarify what really happened
“That could not be further from the truth,” Trocheck said, addressing the report initially brought up by Steve Dangle of SDPN. “If we’re having a closed-door meeting with just the players, I think the last thing we’re going to do is complain about our general manager.
”When we have closed-door meetings in here, it’s about us.”
The aforementioned report suggested that the Rangers’ struggles this season, culminating in trades of key players like former captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks and former no. 2 overall pick Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken, had led players to voice dissatisfaction with Drury’s management.
Dangle claimed that the players expressed their frustrations during a meeting, with some reportedly suggesting Drury had “lost the room.”
Trocheck confirmed there was a players-only meeting following a 5–1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings but dismissed Dangle's claims outright, Baugh reported.
Trocheck also defended Drury’s recent moves, including trading Trouba and Kakko during the team’s ongoing skid.
“You never want to see anybody go,” Trocheck said. “But also, we’re losing games right now. Chris has a job. You can’t just sit there and let us continue to lose and do nothing.
“He’s doing what he can to put the right guys on the ice and make the right moves that he thinks are going to help us win hockey games.“
The Rangers have put up a 15-15-1 record and their 31 points have the team in sixth place in the Metropolitan Division, outside of the playoffs and trailing the Boston Bruins (38 points) and the Ottawa Senators (36) in the Eastern Conference's wild-card race.
