NHL Trade Buzz: Chychrun not concerned with rumors for Coyotes

Jakob Chychrun said he is trying not to listen to rumors involving him as the trade deadline approaches.”I’m trying to be present with the guys and come to work every day and have fun and that’s really all you can do,” the Coyotes defenseman said Thursday. “It’s been going on for a while and I haven’t paid much attention to it. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen.”Chychrun, who turns 24 on March 31, has three years remaining on a six-year contract he signed with the Coyotes on Nov. 13, 2018. He has scored 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) in 45 games this season.Arizona general manager Bill Armstrong said the team has been taking calls on Chychrun but not actively making them.”He’s a No. 1 (defenseman) that’s 23 years old with a team-friendly contract and someone that generated 18 goals the year before, so he has a lot of impact on your team,” Armstrong said. “You’d be crazy to move him unless it moved your team forward.”Chychrun said he understands the trade rumors, particularly with the Coyotes going through a rebuild.”It’s part of the game, part of the business, part of what’s going on here,” he said. “I’m just focused on the present, what I can control. That stuff is all going to sort itself out.”The Coyotes (17-35-4), who are last in the Central Division, visit the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; SNO, BSAZ, ESPN+, NHL LIVE).