As reported by Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet, the Arizona Coyotes have signed Luke Schenn to a two-year contract. The cap hit of the deal will come in at $1.25 million per Elliotte Friedman, also of Sportsnet. The Arizona Coyotes announced the deal through the team’s website but did not disclose the actual terms of the contract per team policy, but it is likely that the reported figures by Elliotte Friedman are accurate.
Welcome to the Pack, Luke Schenn!
Schenn signs two-year contract: https://t.co/Cd5tj1jtoS pic.twitter.com/YnMt1VhttJ
— Arizona Coyotes (@ArizonaCoyotes) July 23, 2016
Newly-appointed general manager of the Arizona Coyotes John Chayka, who is just five months older than Schenn, had this to say about the signing:
“We are very pleased to sign Luke to a two-year contract,” said Chayka. “He’s a good, young defenseman and we feel we can optimize his performance here. He will be a solid addition to our blue line.”
Many teams passed on Schenn this offseason, but Chayka clearly saw a golden opportunity to sign a player who is still in his prime years to a low-risk, high reward contract. The Coyotes signed Chayka because of his advanced knowledge of analytics, and it’s likely that he saw something untapped in Schenn that other teams simply did not.
In 72 games last season split between the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings, Schenn scored four goals and 16 points along with 82 penalty minutes. The former fifth overall draft pick by the Toronto Maple Leafs from the 2008 NHL Entry Draft will join his fourth team where he will look to revitalize his career. both the Coyotes and Schenn are looking to transition to a more successful situation, and they will not look to do so together.
