Jakob Chychrun Getting Traded May Not Be All Bad for Arizona Coyotes

It’s been months (seems longer than that) since the Jakob Chychrun trade rumors have been tossed around in NHL rumors. It was back in April when Chychrun made it known that he wasn’t interested in sticking around for yet another rebuild. It was back then that he told Arizona Coyotes insider Craig Morgan of GOPHNX.com how he felt about his future in the desert.

“I want to win more than anybody,” he said. “Everybody says that, but I truly believe it, and so, at times, that can be tough.”

“I’ve been here my whole career. I absolutely love it here, and it seems like every time we get to a point where it looks like we’re gonna be getting there, it just gets torn down again. That was kind of tough on me a bit this year, just naturally as a human being and a competitive person.”

Jakob Chychrun Could Be Traded Before Training Camp

I’m told the #sens remain in pursuit of Jacob Chychryn. There have been talks this week. The ask remains two 1st round picks and a high end prospect plus Arizona would also take Zaitsev.

— Brent Wallace (@Freeagentwally) August 16, 2022

It seems that one team in particular has raised its interest level in acquiring the defenseman. The Ottawa Senators have already been the team who has improved the most over the offseason, and they intend to continue that trend. The Sens feel adding a top blueliner like Chychrun could pretty well supplement the already well thought of improvements they’ve recently made. They acquired star forward Alex DeBrincat from the Connor Bedard–seeking Chicago Blackhawks, following that up by signing free agent Claude Giroux. Let’s just say on the forward lines especially, the Sens are sitting pretty.

Now, they want to seek a good defenseman to give them another push towards respectability and a berth in the playoffs. Most feel they are headed in that direction; adding Chychrun will only help them that much more.

The Sticking Point…The Return

Every general manager who has contacted Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong concerning what it would take to get Chychrun got the same answer: two first round picks and a high-end prospect. If it’s the Yotes sending Chychrun to Ottawa, they’d would like to take Nikita Zaitsev.

So, will the Sens GM Pierre Dorion give up BOTH his first round picks for the next two years to make a deal? What about the high-end prospect? Will Shane Pinto do? Apparently not…at least not YET. Dorion is hoping by delaying any deal that Armstrong will decrease his want for a return. Don’t count on it. Armstrong knows he can keep Chychrun, and if he fails to get what he wants, that’s okay with him.

Jakob Chychrun is a great defenceman who plays tough #1 minutes and scores a /lot/ of goals for a blueliner – this graphic is from before he scored a hat-trick tonight. #Yotes pic.twitter.com/Zk1xf6gM1H

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) April 5, 2021

You see, the Coyotes don’t NEED to trade Jakob Chychrun. He is still under a very attractive $4.6 million contract good through the 2024-25 season. He has mentioned his disinterest in staying in Arizona due to the direction the club is taking, but he has not yet asked for a trade. Between now and training camp, if that feeling changes, things may progress toward him heading out of town. But until then, he is still an Arizona Coyote.

During Chychrun’s Injury, The Coyotes Did All Right

In the 58 games prior to Chychryn’s ankle injury putting him out of the lineup, the team had a 18-36-4 record. After he was injured, they went 7-14-3. Their points percentage was a mere .344 before his injury. Afterwards, they had a slightly improved percentage of .354. Still, it doesn’t show that with Chychrun healthy they would have finished any higher than 31st.

So, Coyotes fans are left wondering what the team will be like if Chychrun is dealt. You can draw comparisons to the Chicago Blackhawks plight without Patrick Kane and/or Jonathan Toews. Both of the Windy City stars aren’t especially thrilled about sticking around for a rebuild, especially one that could last three to five years.

It may all boil down to Armstrong waiting a bit longer. He knows that he holds the cards in any deal concerning his defenseman. He wants more draft assets to supplement the rebuilding process and can outwait teams interested in his current assets until they get desperate to make a deal. Armstrong (as well as all NHL GM’s) knows that the 2023 and 2024 drafts are going to be exceptional and he has the luxury of waiting in the wings for teams to call him.

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Ottawa Must Decide What To Do

According to Craig Morgan, it isn’t certain at all that Chychrun will be traded. Many factors are involved and it is NOT the Coyotes chattering about trading Chychrun, it has been Ottawa doing that.

Thoughts on the Jakob Chychrun-to-Ottawa chatter:
Is Ottawa a possibility? Sure.
Are other teams in the mix? Yes.
Is it certain that he'll be traded before the season? Not at all.
AZ doesn't need to trade him & Bill Armstrong has demonstrated that he'll stick to his asking price.

— Craig Morgan (@CraigSMorgan) August 18, 2022

With the first preseason game scheduled for September 24th versus the St. Louis Blues in Wichita, KS, that leaves less than a month before training camp begins.

Will Jakob Chychrun be in an Arizona Coyotes uniform by then, or be traded? Your guess is as good as mine!