The Flyers Should Move Heaven and Earth for Jakob Chychrun

In a Philadelphia Flyers season that has tested even the most faithful of fans, some solace could be found that they are not sitting in the basement. No, the basement is the domain of a team like the Arizona Coyotes, a hockey club facing an onslaught of off-ice questions, and an on-ice product that has bottomed out so far this season.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman mentioned as one of his 32 Thoughts that the Coyotes were actually pondering moving on from young defenseman Jakob Chychrun. It is something that indicates a full rebuild for the Arizona team, and presents a tantalizing piece of trade bait for the other 31 teams in the league.

Obviously, anyone who has been on Flyers Twitter knows that big trade bait pieces explode into a series of hot takes, but the Chychrun news does earn itself discussion due to Friedman’s pedigree. But naturally any big trade raises a thousand questions. What’s the cost? Is he any good? Would it help? So, to sift through the muck a tad, I’m here to break it down.

Jakob Chychrun is a 23-year-old, left handed defenseman who had his breakout in the 19-20 season, and has been Arizona’s #1 D-man for several years. More than responsible in his own zone, and fantastic in the opponents, he has emerged as one of the most impressive young defensemen in a time where there is no shortage of talent. Chychrun is also far from a rental, having three more years on his contract at an incredibly reasonable 4.6 million dollar per year. It is that something that, should he be allowed to flourish, could contend for one of the better deals in the league.

Naturally the next question someone would ask is “what would he cost”? Well, based on verified reporter Bill Metzer’s thoughts, Chychrun could cost Travis Konecny, Travis Sanheim, and likely a first round pick, if not additional compensation. Now, admittedly that is a big ask, but breaking it down piece by piece may not make it seem so bad.