NHL suspends ex-Coyote GM Chayka for one year
Former Coyotes general manager John Chayka has been suspended by the NHL through Dec. 31 of this year, according to a Sportsnet report out of Canada.
Chayka, who left the team last summer after terminating his contract just before the start of the postseason, was suspended for conduct detrimental to the league and game, and cannot be involved in NHL business through this year, TSN reported.
The Coyotes had no comment on the ruling. Current GM Bill Armstrong was hired in September and the team parted ways with many front office personnel from Chayka's tenure.
There was also no further comment from the league.
Chayka was named Coyotes general manager in 2016, at age 26. He was the youngest general manager in NHL history at the time.
On July 26, 2020, the team released a scathing statement saying Chayka "quit" on the team and was disappointed in the timing of his decision.
Moving on from controversial ending
Coyotes head coach Rick Tocchet decided to make Monday's practice optional for the players, a day after the team lost in controversial fashion to the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Coyotes sought an icing call from officials with inside of a minute to play that would have stopped the game for a faceoff. instead, Vegas scored the gamewinning goal with 42.7 seconds left when play was allowed to continue.
A video session and an off-ice workout were the order of the day as the team prepared to face the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night at home.
"We just talked about a few things. I'm a big believer that little things matter, and they win games," Tocchet said. "We've moved by what happened at the end. The conclusion is you've got to play to the whistle, if you play to the whistle, they don't score.
"There's a lot of what-ifs. To me, it's a learning experience. I don't think skating (Monday was the right thing to do," Tocchet added.
Center Johan Larsson said it was probably a close call, but that it was unfortunate that it went against the Coyotes.
Ice chips
● Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson was walking well Monday, Tocchet said, as the Coyotes captain continues to work his way back from a lower body injury suffered in the second game of the season. Tocchet hopes to take Ekman-Larsson on the team's next road trip, if not to play then to be around the team.
● Defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin has arrived in Arizona from Russia after dealing with international visa matters, and after a week of quarantine will be eligible to join the Coyotes for workouts. Tocchet said he sent some video to Lyubushkin for him to go over, and the coach said he wants to get Lyubushkin into action when he's ready. "We need that heavy guy back there, right-handed shot, he fits all the needs for us," Tocchet said.