Arizona Coyotes acquire Niklas Hjalmarsson from Chicago Blackhawks

The Arizona Coyotes have acquired right-handed defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson from the Chicago Blackhawks for Connor Murphy and Laurent Dauphin.

Niklas Hjalmarsson is no stranger to what may be his new defensive partner Oliver Ekman-Larsson, as they have played together at the World Cup of Hockey and other international tournaments for Team Sweden.

Niklas Hjalmarsson is known for his shot-blocking abilities and stay-at-home defensive style. While Hjalmarsson can play both sides, he mostly played on the right for Chicago, making him a good option to pair with Ekman-Larsson on the top pairing, which Coyotes GM John Chayka confirmed he sees as the plan moving forward to Craig Morgan of AZ Sports.

Last year, at the age of 29, he played 73 games with 5 goals and 13 assists for 18 points. He is not a point producing defenseman, please keep that in mind.

We will update this story as it develops.