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By SAM FICARRO
Cronkite News
GLENDALE – The Arizona Coyotes, after a disappointing a 1-3-1 home stand, turned to a familiar trade partner to shake things up.
Arizona made its fourth trade with the Chicago Blackhawks within the last two years Sunday night, acquiring center Nick Schmaltz in exchange for center Dylan Strome and forward Brendan Perlini.
Schmaltz, selected 20th overall by the Blackhawks in the 2014 NHL Draft, has posted 11 points in 23 games while playing the wing this season after posting 52 points in 78 games last season.
Coyotes president of hockey operations and general manager John Chayka believe Schmaltz’s speed, skill and creativity fits perfectly with where he believes the NHL game is heading.
“He’s (Schmaltz) a guy who has top-line potential. He’s the right shot we need,” Chayka said. “He’s an elite skater who’s really good at pushing the pace in the middle of the ice. That adds another element, dimension to our team that we’re missing.”
For the Coyotes, the trade marked the end of the road for two of the organizations former first round picks.
Strome, selected third overall in the 2015 NHL Draft behind superstars Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, struggled to stay in the lineup at the NHL level.
Perlini, selected 12th overall in the 2014 NHL Draft, was coming off a 17-goal season but struggled this season posting two goals and six points in 22 games.
Chayka said Schmaltz’s potential to be a star made him worth the price of two young players.
“I don’t believe you win with a collection of good players. You win with a few great players, a star player and kind of go through the process of filling out your roles,” Chayka said. “We felt we were able to get a player whose been very good as a 21-year-old (now 22) and has a chance to be great moving forward.”
The Coyotes have not qualified for the playoffs since the 2011-12 season, but with those struggles came the opportunity to acquire high draft picks. Chayka believes Strome and Perlini were given ample time to show their worth at the NHL level.
“Players’ value changes over time,” he said. “I think for us there’s a key difference between patience and hope. I don’t think hope is a good long-term strategy. I think we showed the requisite patience with these guys in terms of their development. With the circumstances and the situation, we felt we were being more hopeful than anything.”
Last season, Arizona traded forward Anthony Duclair after he struggled to produce offensively. This season with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Duclair has eight goals in 23 games.
During the summer, the Coyotes traded Max Domi after he also failed to produce offensively at the level the organization expected. This season with the Montreal Canadiens, Domi has 26 points in 24 games.
Chayka addressed critics who believe the Coyotes have not given players enough time to develop.
“Look, fans are looking for hope and I understand that,” he said. “We’ve had high picks and they want them to be successful. You can hope or be realistic, be objective of where things are and try to make the most prudent decision with all the facts in front of you.
“Based off of today’s information, the best decision for us was to move forward and find a 22-year-old player who has scored in the past and has the potential, in our minds, to be a difference maker.”
Chayka and head coach Rick Tocchet wouldn’t specify what they were not seeing from Strome or Perlini, but Tocchet acknowledged that the two lacked consistency.
“I think like any young kid, it’s consistency,” Tocchet said. “Both are terrific kids, and I loved coaching them. They’re trying to figure out a few things.”
This trade features three players who haven’t lived up to their first-round potential. Schmaltz was tabbed by those around the Blackhawks as a No. 1 center and the heir apparent to star Jonathan Toews.
Now, Schmaltz has been traded. But he comes to a dressing room where there are a lot of familiar faces.
“It was a shock but at the same time, I know a lot of players on the Coyotes, guys I’ve played with on previous teams,” Schmaltz said. “Really excited. It’s a young group with a lot of skill up front, so I’m excited to get started and get going in the next few days.”
Schmaltz played on the same youth hockey club as Coyotes forward Christian Fischer and center Christian Dvorak, playing on the same line. His closest friend on the Coyotes is forward Vinnie Hinostroza, who came over in the offseason from the Blackhawks.
“He (Schmaltz) is one of my best buddies,” Hinostroza said. “We go way back even before we played pro hockey, so it’s another familiar face here. I’m excited to have him here.”
Encountering familiar faces, Schmaltz said, will help him adjust to the Coyotes.
“I think it helps out just knowing what’s going on and guys helping you get adjusted to a new organization and figure out stuff away from the rink that probably wouldn’t be as easy if you didn’t know some of the guys on the team,” he said.
Tocchet also believes the trade could send a message to the team as they battle for a playoff position in a congested Pacific Division.
“I think sometimes you make a trade at certain points of the season, for whatever reasons, it kind of wakes up a lot of guys,” Tocchet said. “I’m not saying we have a lot of guys like that, but we should be very lucky to be playing this game and we should act like it on the ice sometimes.”
Tocchet believes the trade could be beneficial for both teams.
“Maybe for Stromer (Strome) and Perls (Perlini), they go there and they get a little spark,” Tocchet said. “It could help both teams. I think a team would rather not make trades because that means you really like your dressing room. Everybody always wants a tweak, but at the end of the day, I think it can help both dressing rooms.”