Western Notes: Chayka, Sydor, Eberle
When the Arizona Coyotes gave then 26-year old John Chayka their GM job, many in the hockey world cringed at the thought of the analytic community finally having a poster boy at the top of an NHL franchise. Chayka promised to bring with him the newer possession-based analysis of NHL players, and today summed it up quite nicely in an interview with Dan Rosen of NHL.com:
“The philosophy is fairly simple. It’s when we don’t have the puck, recover the puck as quickly as possible. There are all kinds of different forms where you can gain possession of the puck, some of them are physical and some of them are non-physical, so I think you need a blend to have both. Once you get the puck back it’s to transition the puck. Defense isn’t about defending, it’s about getting the puck in the forwards’ hands and getting the puck moving into the offensive zone. It’s about transitioning.”
The phrase “defense isn’t about defending” will stick out as a sort of mantra for the analytics push, as the league continues to move away from players who can impose themselves physically in their own end, but can’t move the puck when they end up with it. His team has added Alex Goligoski, a possession darling who moves the puck well, but has also signed Luke Schenn and Jamie McGinn, both players who aren’t so revered for their new-age skills. It’ll be interesting to watch what Chayka does in the future, and whether he breeds a level of success rarely seen in the desert of Arizona.
- The Chicago Wolves of the AHL have hired former NHLers Darryl Sydor and Daniel Tkaczuk as assistant coaches for 2016-17, adding to a group that is led by Craig Berube. The St. Louis Blues affiliate went 33-35-8 last season, and will look to improve on that record this year. Sydor, a 19-year NHL veteran played in over 1200 games in his career, and has been coaching as an assistant with the Minnesota Wild for the past five seasons. Tkaczuk, an AHL journeyman who made it into just 19 NHL games during his career, coached with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL last season.
- Jordan Eberle has hired the “Shot Doc” to help him with his shooting ability for next season. Ron Johnson, a skills coach who has worked with Joe Pavelski and Ryan Kesler in the past has been known for improving things like grip mechanics and puck protection. If Eberle can improve on the 14.5% shooting percentage he put up last season, he could climb back above the 30-goal mark for the second time in his career. Eberle has 145 career goals in 425 games, and is a near-lock for 25 each season.
Sunday Snapshots: KHL, Corrado, Schenn
The KHL’s Chinese expansion team, Kunlun Red Star, has signed three former NHLers prior to their first exhibition game, according to KHL insider Aivis Kalnins.
Sean Collins, a 27-year-old center from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, spent last season with the Washington Capitals’ AHL affiliate in Hershey and appeared in two NHL games with the Capitals; winger Alexandre Picard, a former 8th overall pick by Columbus in 2004, played 67 games with the Blue Jackets over parts of five seasons before spending the last four seasons in Switzerland; former Hurricanes defenseman Brett Bellemore also signed with Red Star after spending last season with Providence of the AHL.
Kunlun played its first exhibition game on Sunday morning versus Traktor Chelyabinsk in Finland.
More snapshots from around the hockey world:
- The Maple Leafs and their RFA defenseman Frankie Corrado have filed briefs ahead of their upcoming arbitration case. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports the team’s offers are worth $625K/ $125K on a two-way contract or $575K for a one-way contract. Corrado’s asking price is $900K.
- Newly-signed Coyotes defenseman Luke Schenn told the team’s website that he’s looking forward to being able to grow as a player in a market without as much added pressure as he’s previously experienced. Schenn has played most of his career in major hockey markets Toronto, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles.
Arizona Coyotes Sign Defenseman Luke Schenn
The Arizona Coyotes have signed defenseman Luke Schenn to a two-year deal, first reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger. CBC’s Elliote Friedman says the deal is worth $1.25MM AAV. ProHockeyRumors ranked Schenn the 30th best free agent this summer. The deal represents a significant pay cut for the defenseman, as Schenn’s last deal paid him $3.6MM annually for five years.
The unrestricted free agent put up 4G and 12A with both the Philadelphia Flyers and the Los Angeles Kings last year. The hard-nosed defenseman showed promise early on with the Toronto Maple Leafs after being drafted 5th overall in 2008. Schenn never did meet his potential, and the Leafs traded him to Philadelphia for James van Riemsdyk. Los Angeles traded for Schenn midway through last season in an attempt to bolster its defense.
Coyotes GM John Chayka says that Schenn is “a good, young defenseman and we feel we can optimize his performance here. He will be a solid addition to our blue line.” Arizona is not done with their D-corps, however, as RFA defenseman Michael Stone elected salary arbitration this summer. The hearing is set for August 4th, which gives both sides time to negotiate. The deal leaves the Coyotes with over $13MM in cap space next year, according to CapFriendly. While that is more than enough to sign RFAs Tobias Rieder and Michael Stone, the Coyotes are known to have an internal budget.
[See Arizona Coyotes Depth Chart at Roster Resource]
Free Agent Profile: Luke Schenn
Free agent defenseman Luke Schenn came into the NHL with plenty of expectations, having been drafted with the fifth overall pick in 2008 by the Maple Leafs, winning a gold medal at the World Junior championship, and cracking Toronto’s lineup at 18 years old. Since then, Schenn’s value has diminished, and he’s quickly becoming a veteran journeyman, rather than a budding star.
Initially viewed as a young bright spot on a bad Leafs team, Schenn played 70 games at over 21 minutes a night. The longer Schenn played in Toronto, the more he seemed to be questioned. He was still seen to have the potential to become a high-end NHL defenceman in 2011, when he was signed to a five year, $18MM contract. After signing, Schenn continued to struggle, and was subject of trade rumors all season, until he was dealt to the Philadelphia Flyers at the draft for left winger James van Riemsdyk.
There have been flashes along the way, and Schenn has had success playing with more skilled defense partners, such as Kimmo Timonen, or Michael Del Zotto. Like in Toronto with his draft position, Schenn faced expectations in Philadelphia based on his salary and what was given up to acquire him, and never fully lived up to them. In January, he was dealt to the Los Angeles Kings along with Vincent Lecavalier for Jordan Weal and a third round pick.
Potential Suitors
While he’s unlikely to be called a top-four defenseman, Schenn has value. He’s an experienced and capable player, and plays the right-handed. Teams looking to balance their defense pairings will take a long look at him. The Boston Bruins, for one, only have two right-handed defensemen signed to NHL contracts, and have the sort of puck-skilled left-hand shots that Schenn has seen success with, including former teammate John-Michael Liles. The Edmonton Oilers have also been speculated to be looking for a right-hand shot.
Expected Contract
Placing Schenn 30th on our NHL free agent rankings, we had projected he would receive a three-year, $8.25MM contract. Given how much of the cap space throughout the league has already been spent, it’s hard to imagine him signing for much more than $1MM for one year in an effort to rebuild his value, or provide depth to a contending team. Teams looking for size and balance may be willing to pay more, but one would have to think that if they were, it would be done by now.