Arizona Coyotes’ Jakob Chychrun playing beyond his years

Defenseman Alex Goligoski was playing high-school hockey when he was 18 years old.

Winger Tobias Rieder was in junior. Same with goalie Louis Domingue, who was in his third season. Defenseman Connor Murphy was embarking on Year 1 – just like center Jordan Martinook.

As for Coyotes coach Dave Tippett, he was also a junior-hockey player who spent the summer fighting fires in the northern Saskatchewan forest.

“I wasn’t drafted,” Tippett recalled. “I was just playing for the sake of playing. Didn’t really start thinking about it too much. Went to college, and then when I tried out for the Olympic team and made the Olympic team, that’s when it kind of started to click that I might have a chance. That was about three years later.”

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Clearly, skating in the NHL as a teenager is rare, but defenseman Jakob Chychrun hasn’t just filled a lineup spot. The 18-year-old has stoked optimism for the team’s future by continuing to improve as his rookie season progresses – an evolution that has him in the midst of playing arguably his best hockey to date.

“His game, from where he started to where he is now, is trending very nicely,” Tippett said.

Chychrun scored his seventh goal of the season in the 5-4 shootout loss to the Red Wings on Thursday, which is the second-highest output among all first-year defensemen in the NHL. He also tied Joe Cirella and Jim Benning (1981-82) for the sixth-most goals in a season by an 18-year-old defenseman, according to TSN.

Overall, Chychrun has five points in his past four games – an outburst that highlights the offensive instincts with which he arrived after getting drafted 16th overall last summer, and also the strides he’s made in his own zone, where the focus has been to make better reads and figure out how best to react to situations.

“It’s something we worked on all year,” Chychrun said. “I think the main thought behind it is you’d rather be overaggressive than sit back and the let the play happen. They always tell me my skating is one of my best attributes. They want me to use it – not only jumping up in the play but in the D-zone, as well, closing in on pucks quick, closing on guys quick and just taking space away quick from skill players.”

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This defending base is key; it’s what’s earned him more ice time and – subsequently – more opportunity to flex his offensive skills. But it’s also an essential part of the identity the Coyotes have in mind for him.

“We want him to be a real strong two-way defenseman, be able to put him out in critical situations,” Tippett said. “When you’re behind, he can play in those situations, too. That’s where I envision him, to be a very well-rounded player.”

Chychrun shares that vision, and after working with the coaches to fine-tune his play in his own end, he already feels he can sense when he’s made a mistake. He said he made a “tough read” on Detroit’s fourth goal Thursday and wanted to make up for it, which he did by sliding a shot through traffic later in the third to help the Coyotes snag a point.

“I’m able to kind of self-evaluate myself now, and I know when I’m doing something wrong or I know when I’m doing something right,” he said. “I’m at a good point now.”

Before the season started, management didn’t anticipate Chychrun being in the NHL. But he played his way onto the roster, and team brass came to the conclusion he’d be best-served developing with the Coyotes rather than back in junior.

Still, the Coyotes have closely monitored his journey because of his age. They wanted to challenge Chychrun but not overwhelm him. But they also haven’t felt he’s carried himself as an 18-year-old – perhaps, in part, because of his upbringing, as Chychrun’s dad, Jeff, logged parts of eight seasons in the NHL.

“He’s a mature young man,” Tippett said. “An 18-year-old that is concerned about getting enough rest, concerned about his nutrition, concerned about watching video of himself playing – not a lot of 18-year-old kids do that. He’s a very dedicated athlete that way.”

Adapting to the league, however, has still been a process.

At the beginning of the season, Chychrun was excited to be with the Coyotes but also nervous. He concentrated on his play and making sure he turned in solid performances. After being a healthy scratch five times in November (a timeout issued by the coaching staff to help Chychrun’s transition), he had to rebuild his confidence.

Now, though, he feels comfortable. Chychrun recognizes who he’s on the ice with and what type of plays he should be making – an awareness that’s upped his urgency and intensity to the point that he’s focused on having an impact on the game each and every shift.

“I feel good about my game right now,” he said.

Gaining this experience at 18 is a testament to Chychrun’s talent and an encouraging sign of potentially what’s to come.

But the expectation that he has to continue to evolve won’t disappear once he turns 19 March 31.

“However I end this year, I have to be better than that next year,” Chychrun said. “Same thing after that. So there’s always going to be pressure here, and then there’s hopefully going to be pressure on us to win every year soon. So the pressures will keep building, and that’s something as as players we all love and we all embrace.”

Reach the reporter at [email protected] or 602-444-8276. Follow her at twitter.com/azc_mclellan.

Saturday’s game

Blues at Coyotes

When: 6 p.m.

Where: Gila River Arena.

TV/radio: Fox Sports Arizona/KMVP-FM (98.7).

Coyotes update: Captain Shane Doan didn’t practice Friday and remains day-to-day with a lower-body injury he suffered Thursday. He hasn’t been ruled out for Saturday’s game but is doubtful to play, coach Dave Tippett said. Defenseman Luke Schenn, who left Thursday’s game with an upper-body injury after going head-first into the boards, practiced Friday and is fine, Tippett said.

Blues update: This is the fourth stop on a five-game road trip for the Blues, who grabbed a 4-1 win in San Jose on Thursday against the Sharks. Before that, St. Louis opened their trip with a victory over the Kings before losing to the Ducks. Overall, the Blues have won six of their last seven games. They also have a four-point lead over the Kings for the second wild-card berth in the Western Conference. Winger Vladimir Tarasenko leads the team in goals (34) and points (63). Between the pipes, goalie Jake Allen is 26-19-3 with a .910 save percentage and 2.53 goals-against average.