There has been a welcome surge in skill from the National Hockey League’s rookies. This is the time for that to happen, of course. Many times the thing that separates veterans from rookies is their season long stamina. Sure, players like Auston Matthews are making a splash, but nobody can reasonably expect that to be something that carries through all year. Still, there so many rookies that have been doing so well, it’s something of a sensation. Matthews, his teammate William Nylander, Jimmy Vesey, Patrik Laine.
There are so many first year players doing so well it’s almost easy to forget about Jakub Chychrun. It might be because he is a defenseman, and his stats don’t register as being quite as impressive, or perhaps it’s because he is playing in Arizona, but he hasn’t registered on our radars. His point scoring isn’t sensational, but it is still good, a 1 goal with 2 assists, but he is +2 on a team that isn’t very good. According to most that watch him, the real test is the eye test, of which he is passing with flying colors. Yeah, that’s it. That’s why nobody recognizes Chychrun’s excellence so far. Nobody is watching the Coyotes. Might be time to start.
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