When former Columbus Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekäläinen chose Yegor Chinakhov with the 21st pick of the 2020 draft, the pick had every one confused, much like THN’s Ryan Kennedy below.
With the Blue Jackets acquiring Mason Marchment, and former GM Jarmo Kekäläinen running the show in Buffalo, the time seems perfect to unload the disgruntled winger.
With Marchment coming in and lighting up the scoresheet immediately after coming over from Seattle, the time just seems right, doesn’t it?
Chinakhov requested a trade away from the CBJ last summer, and back in 2023, there were rumors that he was “unhappy” in Columbus and may want out. His agent, Shumi Babaev, told THN Columbus that “At the moment, there are no conversations about a trade on our part. He likes Columbus, both the team and the city.” He went to tell us that “We are in touch with the General Manager (Jarmo), the only thing Yegor wants is to have more ice time, feel the coach’s trust, and help the team win more games. He’s very happy after yesterday’s game. Felt great on the new line.”
Chinakhov has only played 29 of the CBJ’s 36 games this season and has 6 points. Most of his games have come playing on the fourth line, but recently, he had some time at the top of the lineup when Dean Evason shook up the lineup a little.
The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun and Chris Johnston gave their thoughts yesterday about where Chinakhov would go. LeBrun mentioned that originally Don Waddell didn’t want a pick in return for him but may be willing to take one now that they gave up picks for Mason Marchment. With that being said, LeBrun thinks the San Jose Sharks could be a good fit because of his age.
Johnston said that the obvious choice is the Buffalo Sabres. Johnston said, “The Sabres have the draft capital needed to make a future-focused trade, but they also have young roster players who could be moved in a more traditional hockey deal.” He goes on to say, “Chinakhov is still viewed by some around the league as a strong candidate to break out if given a fresh start. His strength and speed are certainly attractive attributes. They’re the qualities that attracted him to Kekäläinen in the first place.”
The time is drawing near for Yegor Chinakhov to start the next chapter of his career and end the disruption that is the Yegor Chinakhov saga.
From the outside looking in, it seems as though this could be a distraction, but in the locker room, it really doesn’t seem like that big of a deal. But if Don Waddell would like a little more flexibility, he should get this done sooner rather than later.
Up Next: The Blue Jackets will now take a five-day break for Christmas and will resume their march to the playoffs on December 28th against the New York Islanders.
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