The Arizona Coyotes are trading defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a 2026 third-round pick, the team announced Wednesday.

“We appreciate everything that Shayne has done for the Coyotes the past two seasons,” general manager Bill Armstrong said in a statement. “He is the consummate professional and we wish him all the best in the future.”

Gostisbehere arrived in Arizona two offseasons ago from the Philadelphia Flyers, where he had spent his first seven seasons in the NHL. Philadelphia attached a 2022 second-round and seventh-round pick to get off of the last two years of Gostisbehere’s salary, which is now an expiring contract worth $4.5 million.

The veteran blue-liner provided a rebuilding Coyotes team with a reliable contributor in their group of defensemen. Gostisbehere played all 82 games last year, and during each of his two seasons in Arizona, he was second on the team in average ice time per game. The leader of that category, Jakob Chrychrun, was moved on Wednesday too.

Gostisbehere has 31 points, tied for the third-most on the Coyotes, with 10 goals and 21 assists.

The trade of Gostisbehere is the latest from Armstrong in dealing away key pieces of the team for draft picks as Arizona began its rebuild after the 2019-20 season.

For the upcoming 2023 NHL Draft, the Coyotes have two extra third-rounders and a bonus fifth-rounder as well. 2024 brings a pair of acquired second-round and third-round picks, plus a fourth-rounder, and 2025 offers three extra second-round picks from trades and a third-rounder. A few of these picks, such as the 2023 third-round pick, are conditional.

The 2026 third-round pick from the Gostisbehere trade is the first selection Armstrong has brought in from that upcoming draft.

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