Friedman adds that the Rangers both want to calm down the situation while also keeping control of the situation, which is why the Rangers did not give anyone permission to speak to Trouba or Kreider.

Just two minutes into the game, the Rangers captain dropped the gloves with Montreal’s Josh Anderson in a heated bout that echoed the growing frustrations around the team and Trouba in particular.

When the Rangers’ longest-tenured player, Chris Kreider, was suddenly sidelined the day after his name was mentioned in president and general manager Chris Drury’s league-wide memo eliciting trade