Coyotes GM shared some very interesting words after Anthony Duclair was traded from Arizona

BarDown Staff

Chicago Blackhawks forward Anthony Duclair. , Norm Hall/NHLI via Getty Images

Former Arizona Coyotes forward Anthony Duclair will get another fresh start to his hockey career. Earlier today, Duclair was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks along with defenceman Adam Clendening in exchange for forwards Richard Panik and Laurent Dauphin.

The #NHL trading season gains momentum with Anthony Duclair heading to the #Blackhawks. Keep track of every deal ahead of the Feb. 26 trade deadline here: https://t.co/ROC4oYLDMa #TradeCentre #TSNHockey pic.twitter.com/S1BFgfEzV4
— TSN Hockey (@TSNHockey) January 10, 2018

The 22-year-old is already somewhat of a journeyman, as he was initially drafted by the New Rangers in 2013 and competed in 18 games with them before playing out his first full season in Arizona. His opening campaign with the ‘Yotes included an impressive 20 goals and 24 assists in 81 games.

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Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images

The Montreal native’s play has dropped since and he has struggled to get back into form. After John Chayka sent the forward packing, the NHL’s youngest general manager made it clear that Duclair and the organization have had issues for the past few years.

#Coyotes GM John Chayka on Anthony Duclair: "It’s gone back for a few years now where the team wasn’t particularly happy with the player and the player wasn’t particularly happy with the team."
— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) January 11, 2018

Chayka acknowledged Duclair is a skilled player, but that some details about the trade should remain behind closed doors.

Chayka on Duclair: "There's a lot of things that go into a trade. Some of them are readily apparent. You see Anthony play and his speed and skill is obvious to everyone. There's some thing that I think should stay behind closed doors."
— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) January 11, 2018

After a busy offseason which saw him trade blue chip prospect Anthony DeAngelo and part ways with long-time captain Shane Doan, Chayka has once again proven that he’s not afraid to pull the trigger on a deal. Duclair goes from the dead-last Coyotes to the always competitive Blackhawks, so odds are he’s thrilled from today’s outcome. The Hawks will travel to Arizona on February 12^th in the teams’ first matchup since the transaction.

(H/T Stephen Whyno)