Another whirlwind off-season by Arizona Coyotes GM John Chayka in which Oliver Ekman-Larsson was resigned for 8 years, Max Domi was traded for Alex Galchenyuk, and Niklas Hjalmarsson and Antti Raanta were both resigned have left Coyotes fans equally excited and optimistic about the upcoming season.
However, the one move no one is talking about is the acquisition of Vinnie Hinostroza and his potential impact on the 2018-2019 Arizona Coyotes. Let’s first start off by breaking down the trade.
The Trade
The Arizona Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks agreed to a seven-player swap that sent Marcus Kruger, Mackenzie Entwistle, Jordan Maletta, Andrew Campbell, and a 2019 fifth-round draft choice to the Chicago Blackhawks for Marian Hossa, Hinostroza, Jordan Oesterle, and a 2019 third rounder.
For any fan living under a rock, this looks like a steal as the Arizona Coyotes receive the best player in Marian Hossa. However, due to a progressive skin condition that has only worsened in recent years, the future-HOF candidate will never suit up in a Coyotes uniform.
Instead, this move was made to help the Blackhawks get out of “Cap Hell” after some mismanaged contracts from GM Stan Bowman. Diving deeper into the trade, however, should give Coyotes fans hope. The name we should all be concerned about is Hinostroza and the immediate impact he can provide to the franchise. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect this player to score 30 goals this year, and neither should you, but let’s break down his stats and find what role he fills in the current Coyotes roster.
The Player
Vinnie Hinostroza is a 5’9, 173 pound, left-winger, who is 24 years old. Many of these attributes fit GM John Chayka’s ideal player mold. I’ll provide a brief breakdown below.
Hinostroza is a right-handed forward, which has been severely lacking on a Coyotes roster that is left-handed prominent.
His age fits perfectly into the Coyotes current rebuild model as he provides youth, energy, and the determination that head coach Rick Tocchet placed great importance on in his first year behind the Coyotes bench.
According to an article written by John Dietz from the Daily Herald, Coyotes GM John Chayka said, “He plays at a super high pace, one of the highest paces in the league, he’s skilled, he’s smart and he reads the play extremely well. He gets out in open ice and he makes a lot of things happen.”
He’s signed for two more seasons at a fair $1.5 million cap hit after which he will still be an RFA. This gives the team flexibility and time to evaluate his play while still having ultimate control of the player.
The Role
My prediction for Hinostroza falls somewhere between the 2nd/3rd line, depending on strength of training camp and his ability to adapt to a new system. Throw in some special teams minutes and you’ve replaced Anthony Duclair with a winger who, by all accounts, actually wants to play the game of hockey.
His familiarity with Christian Dvorak and fellow Chicago native Christian Fischer along with former teammates in Niklas Hjalmarsson and Richard Panik should make the transition to the Desert that much easier.
As previously stated, I don’t, and you shouldn’t, expect 30+ goals out of this kid, that’s not why he’s here. You should, however, expect a determined, NHL caliber left-winger to provide some depth and consistency to a lineup that showed great strides in the second half of the 2017-2018 NHL season.
Season Prediction:
Goals: 15, Assists: 29, Total Points: 44
Final Thoughts
If I’ve learned one thing over these past few seasons with John Chayka in control, it is trust. If you told me two years ago, that we would have moved both Max Domi and Duclair and be in better position to make a playoff run, I would have called you crazy.
Yet, here we stand, with the Coyotes primed to fight tooth and nail for a playoff spot in a Pacific Division that has lost its identity in recent years. Chayka continues to make moves in order to make this team better, both big, and small, and I for one cannot wait to see this team take the ice on October 4th and finally prove the haters (and there are many of them) wrong.