The Jacob Trouba saga is officially over in New York. The Rangers moved on from their captain on Saturday, shipping him to California and the Anaheim Ducks for a player and a pick.

With $8 million in cap space reclaimed after the 30-year-olds departure, general manager Chris Drury has some flexibility to make a move to improve the back end — and he has a couple of names in mind, reported The Athletic's Peter Baugh over the weekend.

The hockey insider points to Columbus Blue Jackets' Ivan Provorov and Pittsburgh Penguins' Marcus Pettersson as two viable options to bring to New York.

“The Columbus Blue Jackets’ Ivan Provorov is the top name on colleague Chris Johnston’s trade big board. He is capable of playing big minutes, averaging 23:19 per game over his nine-year career, but could cost a first-round pick to acquire,” wrote Baugh.

“New York played against another feasible trade target Friday. The Pittsburgh Penguins’ Marcus Pettersson averages 22:23 of ice time per night and can play with skilled players. He and Chris Kreider got into it after the defenseman tripped Braden Schneider into the boards, but they would surely make amends if on the same team.”

Provorov has averaged over 23 minutes per game in his career, and has been a strong two-way defender throughout his time in the NHL. Pettersson is a strong puck mover and would probably cost less. Whether or not Drury is willing to part with top draft capital is up in the air, but both players figure to be a fit on the blue line.

The Rangers have approximately $22 million in cap space, giving them a ton of midseason flexibility to make moves. The blue line could certainly use an upgrade, with two inexperienced players in Zac Jones and Victor Mancini, along with a pending UFA in Ryan Lindgren.

And the roster is struggling mightily right now.

Rangers lost to last place Blackhawks in 1st game without Jacob Trouba

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The Rangers continue to spiral, and they may have hit rock bottom at home on Monday night. New York dropped a 2-1 final to the Chicago Blackhawks at Madison Square Garden, the league's worst team.

The Hawks are 9-17-2 and were mired in a five-game losing streak before the road victory. For the Blueshirts, it's now been eight losses in 10 tries as the miserable stretch continues.

Something clearly needs to be done to jolt this roster, and Baugh points to additional players besides Provorov and Pettersson. He also floated Minnesota Wild's Marco Rossi, Seattle Kraken's Yanni Gourde and even a potential Frank Vatrano reunion.

As well, a cheaper third-pairing defenseman could make sense, writes Baugh, such as Alex Martinez of the Blackhawks or Ian Cole of the Utah Hockey Club.

Regardless of the route the front office goes, it is time the Rangers shake things up to bump this slump. Now 14-12-1 and just barely above .500, New York is going from a Stanley Cup contender to a playoff bubble team in real time.

It'll be interesting to see what gets done to stop the bleeding in the Big Apple. The Rangers are in Buffalo to play the Sabres on Wednesday night.