New York Rangers center Star appears to have brought back an unfortunate souvenir from his time with Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
According to The Athletic, Trocheck suffered a broken finger during the U.S. team’s 2-1 loss to Sweden on Monday. The report, citing two anonymous U.S. team sources, noted that he did not participate in the Rangers’ practice on Friday, unlike his fellow U.S. teammates—defenseman Adam Fox and forwards Chris Kreider and J.T. Miller.
Despite the injury, a league source told The Athletic that Trocheck is not expected to miss any playing time.
On Friday, Rangers coach Peter Laviolette stated that all four Team USA players, who rejoined the team in Buffalo, were expected to play in Saturday’s road game against the Sabres without any restrictions on their ice time. However, he declined to comment specifically on Trocheck’s finger.
Rangers coach Peter Laviolette downplayed concerns about Vincent Trocheck’s status, stating, “As far as Vince goes, he hasn’t missed any games, so we have nothing to report.”
Trocheck appeared to injure his right hand during his final shift of the first period against Sweden, briefly leaving for the locker room before returning for the second period. He went on to play 10:48 in the game.
All four Rangers participated in Team USA’s 3-2 overtime loss to Canada in the championship game on Thursday night in Boston. However, Trocheck saw limited ice time, playing just 10:03—only Chris Kreider (6:25) logged fewer minutes among U.S. skaters.
Trocheck reportedly sustained broken finger at 4 Nations event
Trocheck wrapped up the 4 Nations tournament without registering a point and posted a minus-1 rating across four games, averaging just 11:11 of ice time—nearly half of his 21:19 average with the Rangers this season.
A potential sign that something was off during the championship game against Canada was his performance in the face-off circle. He took only four draws and lost them all—an unusual stat for a player who ranks second in the NHL with a 60.6% face-off win rate among those with more than 250 attempts. Trocheck’s 1,060 face-offs taken are sixth-most in the league, while his 642 wins rank third.
His offensive production has also dipped compared to last season when he set career highs in assists (52) and points (77). This season, he ranks second on the team with 17 goals and fourth with 37 points in 55 games. After finishing last year at plus-16, he currently sits at minus-3. However, he showed signs of heating up before the 4 Nations break, tallying two goals and five points in the Rangers’ last three games, including a two-assist performance in a 4-3 road win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Feb. 8.
Trocheck has yet to miss a game since joining the Rangers as a free agent in July 2022.
With 27 games remaining, the Rangers will need him at full strength as they push for a playoff spot. They return to action Saturday in Buffalo, followed by road matchups against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday and the New York Islanders on Tuesday. Currently sitting 11th in the Eastern Conference, New York trails the Detroit Red Wings by three points for the second wild-card spot and the Ottawa Senators by four for the first.
Trocheck’s health could also influence general manager Chris Drury’s decisions ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline on March 7. Drury has already been active this season, making three significant moves: trading captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks for defenseman Urho Vaakanainen on Dec. 6, dealing forward Kaapo Kakko—2019’s No. 2 overall pick—to the Seattle Kraken for defenseman Will Borgen on Dec. 18, and sending a future first-round pick, center Filip Chytil, and defenseman Victor Mancini to the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 31 in exchange for J.T. Miller.
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