Although the trade request of Yegor Chinakhov of the Columbus Blue Jackets is public knowledge There must be no movement at this stage. General Manager (GM) Don Waddell has clear that he is not willing to make a movement that does not help his team, and the Agent of Chinakhov, Shumi Babayev, has made it clear that the Russian attacker will play his contract if a movement is not made. As a result, Waddell certainly uses the right approach with a potentially valuable property.
Chinakhov’s current value
In general, the value of Chinakhov is currently at a low point. The 24-year-old winger is coming off a back injuryAnd he never seemed really comfortable after he returned at the end of the season. In his last nine games he only recorded one point, an assist against the Pittsburgh Penguins. For his injury, however, he was an impressive start to the season with 14 points in 21 games.
In the end, however, Chinakhov could not act when the Blue Jackets were in the middle of a battle for the last play -off place in the Eastern Conference, quite a bit of damage to both its value and his relationship with the organization. Eventually he was scratched healthily by head coach Dean Evason because of his lack of production, which apparently marked the start of the end of his time in Columbus.
Due to the public trade request, a lack of consistency in the course of his career, and a disappointing achievement after his most recent injury, teams will not quickly pay the asking price of the Blue Jackets for a player drawn up in the first round. Which team also acquires the Russian winger, will take a big gamble, and as a result they will not offer much for him at the moment.
Reconstruction value
On the way to the 2025-26 season, the Blue Jackets must concentrate as quickly as possible on rebuilding the value of Chinakhov. A strong start to the season will do wonders, because it will show that he has completely recovered from the injury and ready to go. However, a slow start can just as easily make it worse for trade negotiations.
The biggest possession of Chinakhov is undoubtedly his shot, but he is not often in the line -up to really show how impressive he can be. He has 30 goal potential at NHL level, but in the past three seasons he played a maximum of 53 games. As a result, if the blue jackets are going to try to get the most out of a potential trade, the first thing they have to do is play him when he is healthy. Simply put, if he is not on the ice, he will not improve his value. On the other hand, Chinakhov must remain healthy to also increase its value, which he has not proven that he can do in the course of an 82 game campaign.
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In general, Waddell has chosen the correct approach to handle this trade request. Although he would rather have kept it under wraps, because that would undoubtedly have negotiated negotiations with opposite GMs much easier, he makes the most out of a bad situation and does not appear to be in pressure. There is no real time crisis to get a deal, because even if Chinakhov stays with the Blue Jackets until 2025-26, he will be a limited free agent and the organization would retain his rights, which seriously limits his options for playing in North America.
Regardless of how long this takes place, Waddell has to stick to his word and wait for a compartment that benefits the team, not just Chinakhov.
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