Six trade destinations to watch for Ottawa Senators defenseman Jakob Chychrun

Credit: Jakob Chychrun (© Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports)

With less than two months until the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline March 8, we’re delivering at least one deadline-focused story every day at Daily Faceoff.

Today, we look at possible trade destinations for a player few would’ve expected to be available when this season started: Ottawa Senators defenseman Jakob Chychrun.

2024 NHL Trade Deadline Countdown: 46 days

What year is it, Jake? Weren’t you one of the marquee defensemen on the block last year?

The Groundhog Day existence continues. The Senators signalled they were loading up for 2023-24 when, last season, then-GM Pierre Dorion sent a 2023 first-round pick and a pair of second-rounders to the Arizona Coyotes for Chychrun. Instead of finally breaking through as a playoff contender this season, the Sens fell on their faces. Coach D.J. Smith didn’t survive December. Past the halfway point of the season, Ottawa sits dead last in the Atlantic Division, even if they turn all their games in hand into victories. Questions abound on whether their dressing room, full of promising young players signed to cozy long-term deals, has the requisite competitiveness to turn things around.

Chychrun, now in his eighth NHL season, has played nine playoff games in his career, and those were gifted to the Coyotes in 2019-20 because they joined the bubble tournament and won a play-in series. How interested is he in signing an extension at this point if Ottawa can’t break through and contend? As Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reported in his most recent Trade Targets story, multiple teams have kicked the tires on Chychrun’s availability, and GM Steve Staios isn’t shooing anyone away. Chychrun has plenty to offer as a 25-year-old in his prime who does a bit of everything in a big frame and can play both sides. He’s especially handy on the power play. Among NHL defensemen with at least 100 minutes played on the man advantage this season, he’s second in shots per 60 and first in expected goals per 60.

So which teams might make sense as destinations for Chychrun? Consider these six options, listed alphabetically.

Detroit Red Wings

Why he makes sense: The Red Wings have adopted an increasingly aggressive posture in roster construction over the past couple years and haven’t yet earned a playoff berth to show for it. There’s no turning back now for GM Steve Yzerman, who has added the likes of Andrew Copp, David Perron, J.T. Compher, Alex DeBrincat, Shayne Gostisbehere and many more since summer 2022. The Wings have run hot and cold all year but are trending back upward and hold down a Wildcard spot in the East while within striking distance of the Toronto Maple Leafs for third in the Atlantic Division. Chychrun would constitute a major-league upgrade over journeyman Ben Chiarot in the top four. He and Jeff Petry have been caved in when paired together, allowing 58 percent of the scoring chances at 5-on-5. Olli Maatta has fared better with Petry but the sample size is tiny.

What he might cost: The good news about the current stage of Detroit’s rebuild: they really haven’t started dipping into their prospects and futures at all. Even though they dealt a first-round pick to get DeBrincat, they had an extra first-rounder for 2024, acquired from the Boston Bruins in the Tyler Bertuzzi deal, meaning they essentially still have a full slate of picks for the next three drafts. They also own one of the better prospect groups in the league. Given the acquisition cost will be high on Chychrun when factoring in his extra year at a very reasonable $4.6 million, it could take a first-rounder and solid prospect to land him. Detroit is as equipped as anyone to win a bidding war and wouldn’t necessarily have to skim from their top tier of prospects. It wouldn’t be a Marco Kasper or Sebastian Cossa or Simon Edvinsson going Ottawa’s way. Maybe it’s someone like Carter Mazur. Detroit could concoct so many workable permutations.

Fly in the ointment: Is it still too soon for the Wings to pony up and pursue a shiny thing approaching the deadline? The Wings have arguably remained stuck in mediocrity because Yzerman jumped the gun and added too many non-star veterans. Chychrun, a very good player but not a franchise player, wouldn’t automatically propel them to the playoffs and would cost them some key foundational pieces to acquire.

Edmonton Oilers

Why he makes sense: As evidenced by winning 13 consecutive games and signing Corey Perry this week, the Oilers are a burgeoning juggernaut, their 2-9-1 start now a speck in the rearview mirror. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call them a Stanley Cup or bust unit. The expectations are that high now. They’ve been looking to deepen their D-corps, and Chychrun’s ability to play the right side means he could bump Cody Ceci out of the top four. Even if they don’t need Chychrun on their already-nuclear power play, that’s a heck of an option for the second unit.

What he might cost: Last season, the Oilers surrendered a good-but-not-elite prospect in Reid Schaefer and a low first-round pick to get Mattias Ekholm. That feels like a decent place to start when envisioning an offer for Chychrun, who was one of their top targets a year ago anyway. Do a 2024 first-rounder and Philip Broberg get it done, for instance? Or would Staios aim higher and seek a Dylan Holloway?

Fly in the ointment: Chychrun can play the right side, but that doesn’t make him a natural righty, and help on that side is GM Ken Holland’s priority. The capped-out Oilers would probably have to throw some NHL money overboard to make Chychrun’s AAV fit, whether that means sacrificing someone like Warren Foegele, bringing in a third-party broker to retain some of Chychrun’s money or both.

Minnesota Wild

Why he makes sense: As reported by The Athletic’s Michael Russo and Joe Smith last week, Wild GM Bill Guerin doesn’t intend to roll over after losing captain Jared Spurgeon to season-ending hip and back surgery. The Wild can now exceed the salary cap by Spurgeon’s $7.575 million cap hit. They go from the team hamstrung by the buyout penalties to Ryan Suter and Zach Parise to a team well equipped to add significant salary. The benefit of targeting someone like Chychrun: even if the Wild don’t make the playoffs, they’re still strengthening their D-corps for next year. They arguably have the talent to reload and contend in 2024-25 simply with better injury luck.

What he might cost: The acquisition cost would be tricky from Minnesota’s perspective. They own all their first-round picks, but moving them is a risky proposition for a team with playoff odds of 4.5%. They have one of the better prospect pools in the league; they could probably afford something involving one or more second-round picks and a prospect ranked in the 6-10 range of their best ones. But does that win you a bid for Chychrun? I’m not so sure.

Fly in the ointment: As reported by Russo and Smith, Guerin doesn’t want to move a first-round pick. It’s possible Chychrun is out of Minnesota’s price range. And when you’re six points out of a Wildcard spot, should you be attempting a big splash at all? He’s a fun fit for Minny but only if Guerin feels like making an aggressive play.

New Jersey Devils

Why he makes sense: It all depends on how salvageable you believe this Devils season is. I see a team that could be this year’s Florida Panthers, grinding all season, barely crawling into the playoffs and peaking at the right time with a talented roster that gets healthy when it matters most. If GM Tom Fitzgerald sees things similarly, he could attempt a splashy move to bolster a battered blueline missing its top pair of Jonas Siegenthaler and Dougie Hamilton and veterans Brendan Smith and Colin Miller.

What he might cost: The Devils used a first-round pick and prospect Shakir Mukhamadullin to land Timo Meier a year ago. They could repeat that process using their 2024 first-rounder, and their prospect pool is elite enough that they can still offer an enticing piece without touching their top-tier guys who have graduated to the NHL. The Devils, like the Red Wings, have plenty of options and are among the best-equipped teams to pursue a player of Chychrun’s value.

Fly in the ointment: Once the Devils get healthy, they’re more than fine on defense, really: Hamilton, Siegenthaler, Luke Hughes, John Marino, Simon Nemec and so on. They don’t necessarily need a high-level talent influx. A solid veteran stopgap would do them just fine – and cost less. The cost is worth considering given the Devils aren’t a lock to make the playoffs. They remain set up to contend for Stanley Cups for years to come. They could just chalk 2023-24 up to bad luck and wait until next season to make another bold move. It’s also worth remembering, as I’ve previously pointed out, that goaltending is the biggest question mark for New Jersey to solve and may take priority over defense.

New York Islanders

Why he makes sense: What does Lou Lamoriello have to lose at this point? At every turn, no matter now middling his group is, he continues to treat them like a contender. That’s why he gave up a first-round pick and prospect last season to acquire Bo Horvat, who helped them *checks notes* lose in the first round of the playoffs. It’s why Lamoriello fired coach Lane Lambert over the weekend and replaced him with the volcanic Patrick Roy. With the Isles still awaiting Ryan Pulock’s return from a lower-body injury while his replacement, Robert Bortuzzo, is also out, Chychrun would be a welcome addition to that defense corps. He hasn’t had a great year defensively but would still feel like an upgrade over what the Isles have given his size, strength and rangy stick.

What he might cost: The Isles have first-round picks to dangle. Even if they would be unwise to sacrifice them, that didn’t stop Lamoriello last season. Having fired two coaches in less than two years, his own strip of runway could be dwindling, in which case he has every reason to go all-in, especially if it means landing multiple years of Chychrun.

Fly in the ointment: If you zoom out: the Islanders simply aren’t close to championship contention, with or without Chychrun. They sit outside a playoff spot, they grade out as one of the absolute worst defensive clubs in the league despite their great goaltending, and Roy’s presence won’t necessarily remedy that overnight. His Jack Adams Award Colorado Avalanche team was best known for out-performing its bad underlying metrics and relying on a great Semyon Varlamov year, so don’t hold your breath on this team becoming stingy.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Why he makes sense: The Leafs’ rollercoaster climbs high and dives low from one week to the next. No matter what, this team still fashions itself a Stanley Cup contender and quite obviously needs help on defense. Inconsistent and injured goalies aside, the Leafs have regressed badly when it comes to preventing opposing scoring chances. With T.J. Brodie going UFA this summer, not to mention Mark Giordano and John Klingberg, Chychrun’s $4.6 million AAV wouldn’t be too problematic for next season’s payroll. Even with Auston Matthews’ and William Nylander’s new deals kicking in, Toronto still has to pay someone on ‘D’ on top of Morgan Rielly.

What he might cost: If we think “first-rounder and prospect” is the likely price for two playoff runs with Chychrun: Toronto could build something around their 2024 first-rounder and prospect defenseman Topi Niemela, for instance. A steep price for a team without a great prospect pool, but the offer would have to be competitive.

Fly in the ointment: Despite Toronto’s much-publicized need for help on defense, GM Brad Treliving isn’t known for being an overly aggressive in-season trader. It would be an act of desperation to pay a massive price for a Chychrun deal when the Leafs might be better off accepting that they’re merely decent this season and going for it next season. The Leafs arguably need more of a pure shutdown presence than an all-round guy like Chychrun anyway. And an in-season trade between division rivals isn’t the easiest to stomach.

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