Arizona Coyotes’ Jakob Chychrun Should Make Opening Night Roster
Arizona Coyotes newly drafted blue-liner Jakob Chychrun has his eyes set on making the opening day roster, and that’s exactly where he should be to start the season.
Arizona Coyotes prospect defenseman Jakob Chychrun has a great deal of confidence in his abilities, with his eyes on the prize during this season’s training camp. His goal is to make the starting roster and wear a Coyotes sweater on October 15th in front of the home ice crowd.
All of the prospects say that. And they all mean it.
You have to have that mindset if you’re going to make an NHL roster.
Chychrun’s language has been a bit different though, leading me to believe that not only is that his goal, but that he genuinely believes he can make it happen.
I love that in a player.
Chychrun was selected by the Coyotes at number 16 in this year’s draft, and the team thinks very highly of him. Management had their eyes on him before the draft began and traded up to get him.
General Manager John Chayka even intimated that he would have chosen him 7th overall if he wasn’t positive he could get him later.
The Arizona Coyotes are in a unique position. Defenseman Michael Stone is still recovering from his knee injury.
Recent reports have cast some doubt on whether he will be ready for opening night. He’s yet to hit the ice in contact play.
Defenseman Kevin Connauton was also recently injured, and there’s some question as to when he will be back to full speed.
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The next day after the Coyotes opener against the Philadelphia Flyers, the team heads east for a marathon road trip. They’ll play six games away before heading back to Gila River Arena.
This could be Chychrun’s opportunity.
Michael Stone is an important piece of the Arizona Coyotes puzzle going forward. Stone recently signed a one-year contract that clearly is a bridge to a long-term deal, if he recovers well and shows he can still get the job done after knee surgery.
That means Stone’s future career, and the Coyotes’ plans for this season, require that his recovery go well. This is why Stone should forego jumping back on the ice too quickly, and spend October continuing his rehab to ensure a healthy return.
In the interim, Chychrun should get some NHL ice time with the team and gather some of that needed experience while Stone is mending. They aren’t like-for-like, as Chychrun is a left-handed defenseman, but Dave Tippett could juggle the lineup to make it work.
If Chychrun plays with the team during the month of October, he will get some valuable experience while giving Arizona Coyotes management enough time to evaluate his performance. If the team believes he’s ready, they can adjust the roster accordingly.
If he’s not ready, they can send him down after eight or nine games and not sacrifice that first year on his entry-level contract.
If they keep him there and he performs, the Coyotes can still send him down before the 40-game mark and retain an extra year before free agency eligibility.
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It all will come down to Chychrun’s performance during training camp and in the preseason games versus NHL-quality opponents.
If he plays as well as the Arizona Coyotes management believes he can, we may just see him introduced before the raucous crowd at the arena on opening night.
And then it will be up to him to determine how long he stays on that roster.