The NHL draft and free agency have not been the buzz builders that the Phoenix Coyotes had hoped for.
Aside from dealing for a couple of minor league prospects, the only NHL player acquired at the draft was defenseman Jim Vandermeer who came over from the Calgary Flames. Now one day into free agency the Yotes’ have added journeyman (don’t you just love that word) goaltender Jason LaBarbera and utility (another cool adjective) forward Vernon Fiddler as free agents.
I didn’t even write a free agent preview because I wasn’t expecting much out of the Coyotes. Everyone assumed GM Don Maloney would be shopping in the bargain aisle this summer. So far, it feels like the clearance bin at the dollar store.
Fiddler is a nice 3rd/4th line player. He works hard, kills penalties, wins face-offs and was a crowd favorite in Nashville. He will fill the Steve Reinprecht role on the team.
LaBarbera is an enigma. Like most goaltenders he is streaky. But boy is he ever streaky. He can be very good one night and very bad the next. In parts of 5 NHL seasons, it’s been more bad (2.97 GAA) than good.
Maloney has history with the lanky goaltender. When GMDM was in New York, LaBarbera was a Ranger draftee and farmhand.
Here’s a great story about Jason’s roller coaster career…
http://crashingthegoalie.com/2009/02/15/the-ups-and-downs-of-jason-labarbera/
LaBarbera was signed to push Ilya Bryzgalov but in reality he won’t be doing that. He’ll battle another form Ranger, Al Montoya, for the backup position.
But there is still hope for a shot of electricity that the franchise desperately needs. The silver lining here is that even with the three acquisitions made to date, the Coyotes are still below the NHL salary cap floor. I’ll do the math later today but it looks that even with reasonable qualifying offer allowances for players like Keith Yandle and Scott Upshall, the team still has enough money to buy another player or two.
So now what? The team still needs help on defense. Preferably a right hand shot. Derek Morris is still out there but there’s a certain ‘been there, done that’ quality to any potential resigning. And let’s not forget that Morris was awful for much of 2008-09.
And there’s a real need for a proven goal scorer to take some pressure off the young guns. The Coyotes were 29th in the NHL in scoring last year. While there is a lot of hope for internal improvement, there’s still a long way to go. There will be a lot of pressure on the kids to produce if this is the team we go to war with.
As other teams sign shiny new free agents, there may be some salary dumps available. And there’s always the player who won’t have a seat when the music stops playing who may just decide Phoenix in January sounds pretty damn good.
Until there is new ownership in place, Phoenix will simply not have the money or will to compete for premium free agents. There’s no money to take on big contracts from other teams. There is however a need to create news and excitement around the team and the next few days will go a long way to seeing what rabbits GMDM might be able to pull out of the hat.
Showing posts with label NHL Draft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NHL Draft. Show all posts
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Coyotes Reading Room
Some interesting stuff from around the Internet on the eve of the NHL draft
Gretzky would consider a pay cut to stay in his position. Hmmm...
Gretzky would consider a pay cut to stay in his position. Hmmm...
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/gretzky-would-consider-salary-cut/article1194684/
Why would Jerry Reinsdorf want to buy the Coyotes?
http://espn.go.com/chicago/columns/blog?post=4281827&name=cimaglia
sounds a lot like our assessment originally posted on May 22nd.
And colorful Leafs GM Brian Burke thinks hockey can be a success in Phoenix...
a position that no doubt most of us will agree with.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
What To Watch For On Draft Day(s)
If you’re taking in the NHL draft on Friday afternoon (4PM, Versus) there are several things to be watching for as the Coyotes are scheduled to pick at #6 and #36. Here are some things keys to look for as the draft develops.
The Bombshell Trade – There’s only one available player out there worthy of the Yotes’ #6 draft pick and that’s Boston Bruin Left Wing Phil Kessel. If there is going to be a major trade at the top of the draft, it will almost certainly include Kessel. The Coyotes have interest in trading for the 21-year-old and if the Bruins are inclined to move him, a package of #6 plus Chris Summers could get it done. Kessel might not last this long because Atlanta at #4 and Los Angeles at #5 could also be interested. If he’s going to be moved, it will almost certainly be to a team with a high draft pick as the salary cap constrained Bruins will be looking for non-NHL assets in return. This could be where Don Maloney drops his second annual draft bombshell (see Olli Jokinen) Of course, this could depend on…
The First 5 Players Picked – Most NHL observers think that John Tavares (no relation to Tony), Victor Hedman, Matt Duchesne, Brayden Schenn and Evander Kane are the top five players available in the draft. If all 5 go before the Coyotes pick at # 6 a trade down becomes more likely. Don Maloney would love to see one of these players slide to #6 so he can select that player or extract a high price from another team to trade down. And that team might be…
The Toronto Maple Leafs – Colorful Leafs GM Brian Burke wants to make his team tougher and more North American. He also wants to move up in the draft to select John Tavares or Brayden Schenn. If Burke cannot get into the top 2 and Schenn falls to 6, he and Maloney could do business. If not the Leafs, the Coyotes are unlikely to trade down below the #9 pick owned by Ottawa because players they value highly will still be available…
And The Coyotes Select – Either Defenseman Jared Cowen of the Spokane Chiefs or Forward Nazim Kadri of the London Knights. Listening to Don Maloney speak earlier this spring, he talked about the top players in the draft as “Tavares, Hedman, Duchene, Kane, Cowen and possibly Kadri”. When it became clear that the Coyotes were drafting at six and that five players were getting the most press (Tavares, Hedman, Duchesne, Kane, Schenn) he changed his tune to list those 5 players. June is liar’s month in the NHL. Players do move up and down the draft board. But it makes sense that Maloney took the easy way out by saying there are 5 great players and we get the next best. Maloney is always thinking.
What unites Cowen and Kadri is the 2008 Memorial Cup. Cowen’s Spokane Chiefs bested Kadri’s (and Mikkel Boedker) Kitchener Rangers in a terrific series. Maloney scouted that tournament heavily, went on to draft Boedker and brought along high opinions of both players. Cowen missed the second half of the 2008-09 season with a knee injury. Kadri was traded to the London Knights where his game really took off in the second half of the season.
Maloney has also alluded to cutbacks in scouting expenses this year. That could mean a less than thorough vetting of the two Euros (Oliver Ekman-Larson and Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson ) ranked in the next group of the top 10 available players. That translates to a higher comfort level with players the team is more familiar with.
Cowen is rated higher in most mocks and by NHL Central Scouting. If the Coyotes pick at 6 or 7 he could be the pick. If they go lower or if Cowen is gone, Kadri will likely be the choice. And then on Saturday morning…
The Coyotes Pick at #36 – Or at least they are scheduled to. The early second round choice could go in a number of directions. Maloney has talked about possibly trading down in the 2nd to pick up an additional third round choice. The Coyotes sent their third round choice to Calgary in the Jokinen/Lombardi trade. It could also be packaged, perhaps with Calgary’s #1 in 2010 to move into the second half of the first round. If a player Maloney really likes starts to drop, he could try to trade back into the latter part of the first round.
And don’t discount the possibility of this pick being packaged with other assets to bring back immediate help. This pick won’t realistically help the big club for 2 or 3 years. For a win now team, that may not be good enough. Our guess is that whatever the course, Maloney won’t be picking at #36. He’ll either add assets by trading down or pursue a win now strategy by trading for a younger roster player or a late first round draft choice.
It will be an interesting draft. With uncertainty about how aggressive the Coyotes will (or can) be in the free agent market, trading and drafting are the keys to improving the team. With the pressure of new ownership and the urgency to win sooner rather than later, the Coyotes will be active this weekend. It will be interesting to see how active they are.
The Bombshell Trade – There’s only one available player out there worthy of the Yotes’ #6 draft pick and that’s Boston Bruin Left Wing Phil Kessel. If there is going to be a major trade at the top of the draft, it will almost certainly include Kessel. The Coyotes have interest in trading for the 21-year-old and if the Bruins are inclined to move him, a package of #6 plus Chris Summers could get it done. Kessel might not last this long because Atlanta at #4 and Los Angeles at #5 could also be interested. If he’s going to be moved, it will almost certainly be to a team with a high draft pick as the salary cap constrained Bruins will be looking for non-NHL assets in return. This could be where Don Maloney drops his second annual draft bombshell (see Olli Jokinen) Of course, this could depend on…
The First 5 Players Picked – Most NHL observers think that John Tavares (no relation to Tony), Victor Hedman, Matt Duchesne, Brayden Schenn and Evander Kane are the top five players available in the draft. If all 5 go before the Coyotes pick at # 6 a trade down becomes more likely. Don Maloney would love to see one of these players slide to #6 so he can select that player or extract a high price from another team to trade down. And that team might be…
The Toronto Maple Leafs – Colorful Leafs GM Brian Burke wants to make his team tougher and more North American. He also wants to move up in the draft to select John Tavares or Brayden Schenn. If Burke cannot get into the top 2 and Schenn falls to 6, he and Maloney could do business. If not the Leafs, the Coyotes are unlikely to trade down below the #9 pick owned by Ottawa because players they value highly will still be available…
And The Coyotes Select – Either Defenseman Jared Cowen of the Spokane Chiefs or Forward Nazim Kadri of the London Knights. Listening to Don Maloney speak earlier this spring, he talked about the top players in the draft as “Tavares, Hedman, Duchene, Kane, Cowen and possibly Kadri”. When it became clear that the Coyotes were drafting at six and that five players were getting the most press (Tavares, Hedman, Duchesne, Kane, Schenn) he changed his tune to list those 5 players. June is liar’s month in the NHL. Players do move up and down the draft board. But it makes sense that Maloney took the easy way out by saying there are 5 great players and we get the next best. Maloney is always thinking.
What unites Cowen and Kadri is the 2008 Memorial Cup. Cowen’s Spokane Chiefs bested Kadri’s (and Mikkel Boedker) Kitchener Rangers in a terrific series. Maloney scouted that tournament heavily, went on to draft Boedker and brought along high opinions of both players. Cowen missed the second half of the 2008-09 season with a knee injury. Kadri was traded to the London Knights where his game really took off in the second half of the season.
Maloney has also alluded to cutbacks in scouting expenses this year. That could mean a less than thorough vetting of the two Euros (Oliver Ekman-Larson and Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson ) ranked in the next group of the top 10 available players. That translates to a higher comfort level with players the team is more familiar with.
Cowen is rated higher in most mocks and by NHL Central Scouting. If the Coyotes pick at 6 or 7 he could be the pick. If they go lower or if Cowen is gone, Kadri will likely be the choice. And then on Saturday morning…
The Coyotes Pick at #36 – Or at least they are scheduled to. The early second round choice could go in a number of directions. Maloney has talked about possibly trading down in the 2nd to pick up an additional third round choice. The Coyotes sent their third round choice to Calgary in the Jokinen/Lombardi trade. It could also be packaged, perhaps with Calgary’s #1 in 2010 to move into the second half of the first round. If a player Maloney really likes starts to drop, he could try to trade back into the latter part of the first round.
And don’t discount the possibility of this pick being packaged with other assets to bring back immediate help. This pick won’t realistically help the big club for 2 or 3 years. For a win now team, that may not be good enough. Our guess is that whatever the course, Maloney won’t be picking at #36. He’ll either add assets by trading down or pursue a win now strategy by trading for a younger roster player or a late first round draft choice.
It will be an interesting draft. With uncertainty about how aggressive the Coyotes will (or can) be in the free agent market, trading and drafting are the keys to improving the team. With the pressure of new ownership and the urgency to win sooner rather than later, the Coyotes will be active this weekend. It will be interesting to see how active they are.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Coyotes Auction August 5th. Only Local Owners Need Apply
The news is good for Coyotes fans tonight.
For starters, the NHL announced in a court filing and later confirmed in court that the Jerry Reinsdorf-John Kaites (-Tony Tavares?) group would be filing a bid to buy the team by the Friday deadline.
Then Judge Tom dropped a Baum-shell on Jim Balsillie’s bid to move the team to Canada by setting an August 5th auction date for owners who want to operate the team in Arizona. The Judge indicated that he likes the ease of selling the team locally, noting that there would be multiple legal complications to any offer that would move the team, especially if it was against the will of the NHL. Should no local owner be selected or qualified on the August 5th, a second auction would be held on September 10th that could potentially open the team to relocation. Think of this date as “if necessary” and hope that the game is never played.
The NHL has long held that a bid to purchase the team and keep it in Arizona was forthcoming and the news that the bid is imminent is good. Additionally, minority owner John Breslow has talked of offering a bid and there are still others who may be lurking. It remains to be seen if Breslow will enter the bidding by Friday’s deadline but one possibility is that he may join the Reinsdorf- Kaites (-Tavares?) group.
Negotiations with the City of Glendale will be following. The City expressed concern that August 5th was an aggressive deadline. After looking at the alternatives, that will seem like an eternity for them to close a deal.
Still to be revealed are the other members of the bidding group. There has been speculation that Hollywood producer (and aspiring NHL owner) Jerry Bruckheimer may be part of the action. We believe that Arte Moreno, the owner of baseball’s Los Angeles Angels and a Phoenix resident may also be a potential investor.
So now that the Reinsdorf- Kaites (-Tavares?) group is officially out of the water, many questions emerge. There was much speculation early on that Wayne Gretzky would not be retained in his current role if the ownership went in this direction. We’ll find out soon if that is the case. It’s unlikely that the iconic and ever-gracious Gretzky would simply be dismissed but he may be asked to take a lesser and lower paying role in the management of the team.
The player budget floor 2009-10 is also on the table. If Gary Bettman is directing Don Maloney with the understanding that NHL money was paying the bills, you can bet the Coyotes would be close to the floor minimum. With new money and ownership was coming to the table, that could mean a bigger player budget for next year. And with shopping season right around the corner, it’s fair to assume that this issue has already been vetted with the R-K-(T?) group.
And finally, changes in the off-ice management of the team may be on the table. If Tony Tavares is an active participant, that will likely signal some realignment of the front office. One can assume that based on the reports of high administrative expenses, Tony would be a tiger in holding down costs. Tavares has a reputation for being a hardnosed operator but his experience and marketing background could be a large asset to the franchise.
We’ll know a lot more later this week. For now, we’ll take solace in knowing that the cavalry is on the way, they are bringing a checkbook and they seem willing to dig in a make this franchise a success. And they are doing all of these things without dragging the team off to Hamilton.
For starters, the NHL announced in a court filing and later confirmed in court that the Jerry Reinsdorf-John Kaites (-Tony Tavares?) group would be filing a bid to buy the team by the Friday deadline.
Then Judge Tom dropped a Baum-shell on Jim Balsillie’s bid to move the team to Canada by setting an August 5th auction date for owners who want to operate the team in Arizona. The Judge indicated that he likes the ease of selling the team locally, noting that there would be multiple legal complications to any offer that would move the team, especially if it was against the will of the NHL. Should no local owner be selected or qualified on the August 5th, a second auction would be held on September 10th that could potentially open the team to relocation. Think of this date as “if necessary” and hope that the game is never played.
The NHL has long held that a bid to purchase the team and keep it in Arizona was forthcoming and the news that the bid is imminent is good. Additionally, minority owner John Breslow has talked of offering a bid and there are still others who may be lurking. It remains to be seen if Breslow will enter the bidding by Friday’s deadline but one possibility is that he may join the Reinsdorf- Kaites (-Tavares?) group.
Negotiations with the City of Glendale will be following. The City expressed concern that August 5th was an aggressive deadline. After looking at the alternatives, that will seem like an eternity for them to close a deal.
Still to be revealed are the other members of the bidding group. There has been speculation that Hollywood producer (and aspiring NHL owner) Jerry Bruckheimer may be part of the action. We believe that Arte Moreno, the owner of baseball’s Los Angeles Angels and a Phoenix resident may also be a potential investor.
So now that the Reinsdorf- Kaites (-Tavares?) group is officially out of the water, many questions emerge. There was much speculation early on that Wayne Gretzky would not be retained in his current role if the ownership went in this direction. We’ll find out soon if that is the case. It’s unlikely that the iconic and ever-gracious Gretzky would simply be dismissed but he may be asked to take a lesser and lower paying role in the management of the team.
The player budget floor 2009-10 is also on the table. If Gary Bettman is directing Don Maloney with the understanding that NHL money was paying the bills, you can bet the Coyotes would be close to the floor minimum. With new money and ownership was coming to the table, that could mean a bigger player budget for next year. And with shopping season right around the corner, it’s fair to assume that this issue has already been vetted with the R-K-(T?) group.
And finally, changes in the off-ice management of the team may be on the table. If Tony Tavares is an active participant, that will likely signal some realignment of the front office. One can assume that based on the reports of high administrative expenses, Tony would be a tiger in holding down costs. Tavares has a reputation for being a hardnosed operator but his experience and marketing background could be a large asset to the franchise.
We’ll know a lot more later this week. For now, we’ll take solace in knowing that the cavalry is on the way, they are bringing a checkbook and they seem willing to dig in a make this franchise a success. And they are doing all of these things without dragging the team off to Hamilton.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Prucha Re-ups for 2 Years
The Coyotes have signed left wing Petr Prucha to a 2 year contract. Prucha played for $1..6 million last year and likely would not have been qualified at that amount. It's expected he will receive less money in exchange for a two year commitment.
Prucha, who will turn 27 in September, had 2 goals and 8 assists in 19 games after joining the Coyotes at the trade deadline in the Derek Morris trade. In his four year NHL career, he has scored 65 goals including 30 in his rookie season in New York. Prucha is a quick energetic player who could be an nice asset for the Yotes if he can regain his goal scoring touch.
Importantly, this signing shows that GM Don Maloney has some latitude to sign players for more than one season. That's a promising sign.
Update: According to TSN, Prucha's contract is for $1.1 miilion per year.
Prucha, who will turn 27 in September, had 2 goals and 8 assists in 19 games after joining the Coyotes at the trade deadline in the Derek Morris trade. In his four year NHL career, he has scored 65 goals including 30 in his rookie season in New York. Prucha is a quick energetic player who could be an nice asset for the Yotes if he can regain his goal scoring touch.
Importantly, this signing shows that GM Don Maloney has some latitude to sign players for more than one season. That's a promising sign.
Update: According to TSN, Prucha's contract is for $1.1 miilion per year.
Reinprecht Traded to Florida
Steve Reinprecht will not be back with the Coyotes next year. Facing a situation where the team felt they could not resign the player, the Yotes have swapped his rights to the Florida Panthers in exchange for 23-year-old left wing Stefan Myers. We’re checking with our AHL contracts and will have a scouting report on Myers shortly.
Myers was drafted in the second round (#55 overall) by the Panthers in 2003. He has spent the last four seasons with the American League Rochester Americans scoring 64 goals and 130 points in 266 games. He made his NHL debut with the Panthers last year going scoreless in 4 games. Meyer stands 6’ 2” and weighs 194. He is a restricted free agent.
Upon completion of the trade, Reinprecht signed a three year contract with the Panthers averaging just a little over $2 million per season. Since coming to Phoenix in a deadline deal with Calgary in 2005, he had been a useful player who provided leadership and versatility. The 33-year-old went 14-27-41 last year despite missing a month with a shoulder injury. It’s worth noting that his absence from the lineup coincided with the Coyotes February swoon that cost the team any chance at a playoff spot.
Update: Our AHL correspondent (who happens to be in Rochester) tells us that Myers is a good team guy, but only a little above average player for the AHL level. He questions whether Myers can ever be a full time NHLer. Myers has been in Rochester a long time and might've gotten a little stale. Even so, he's still young and maybe with a change of scene and another year older, he might be ready to take another step up.
Myers was drafted in the second round (#55 overall) by the Panthers in 2003. He has spent the last four seasons with the American League Rochester Americans scoring 64 goals and 130 points in 266 games. He made his NHL debut with the Panthers last year going scoreless in 4 games. Meyer stands 6’ 2” and weighs 194. He is a restricted free agent.
Upon completion of the trade, Reinprecht signed a three year contract with the Panthers averaging just a little over $2 million per season. Since coming to Phoenix in a deadline deal with Calgary in 2005, he had been a useful player who provided leadership and versatility. The 33-year-old went 14-27-41 last year despite missing a month with a shoulder injury. It’s worth noting that his absence from the lineup coincided with the Coyotes February swoon that cost the team any chance at a playoff spot.
Update: Our AHL correspondent (who happens to be in Rochester) tells us that Myers is a good team guy, but only a little above average player for the AHL level. He questions whether Myers can ever be a full time NHLer. Myers has been in Rochester a long time and might've gotten a little stale. Even so, he's still young and maybe with a change of scene and another year older, he might be ready to take another step up.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Win. Now.
Yes, the Coyotes have committed to youth. Yes, they have traded veteran chips for younger assets in each of the last two seasons. And yes, they have not only loaded up on youngsters, they’ve played the kids and allowed them to get valuable NHL experience.
In fact, last year the Coyotes routinely played a minimum of 10 players with 2 or less years experience in the league. Phoenix iced the second youngest team in the league last season.
But now the team is in a quandary. Like it or not, this is a win now team. New owners, old owners or for that matter any owners cannot stand another $30 million dollar bloodbath. The only way to fix the financial condition of the team is to win. Now. Until the team on the ice turns the corner, the turnout in the stands will not materialize. No uptick in fan support and we’ll see more summers of wondering whether this team is here for the long haul.
Oh and by the way Don Maloney, you can spend to the salary cap floor. And be sure and get league approval before you make any long term contract commitments.
Gee, thanks.
If you read yesterday’s entry, you know that Maloney has somewhere in the neighborhood of $5-6million to get the two things the Coyotes really need – a high end goal scorer and a top 4 defenseman.
Oy.
So how do they do it?
Well, for starters this is not business as usual. It’s great that the Coyotes have the #6 and #36 pick in this draft. It’s great that they have Calgary’s #1 next year. And Philadelphia’s #2 the year after. Because they will need every one of those assets.
And free agency may or may not help. The uncertainty surrounding the team and the questions about whether there will be long term commitments available may make this a tougher sell. Derek Morris is the most obvious candidate but whether or not he will be affordable is a question.
The Coyotes brain trust needs to think outside of the box. Way outside of the box. Picking the best player available is a nice, safe strategy. It may set the next management team up for success.
So how do the Coyotes stay true to their (current) principles and win now?
Here are a few suggestions…
1. Trade assets, including draft picks for restricted free agents. There’s an interesting dynamic at play in the NHL right now. With so many teams bumping up against the cap, some very good young players may not be affordable to their current teams. Two very capable assets that are rumored to be available are 21 year-old (and 36 goal scorer) Phil Kessel of the Boston Bruins and 23-year-old defenseman Cam Barker of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Both players would fill glaring needs for the Yotes. Kessel is a dynamic goal scorer. Barker hasn’t been all that was hoped for when he was picked 3rd in the draft a few years ago but he contributes on offense (49 points) can run a power play and still has plenty of development time to round out his game.
Both of these players will come with a big ticket. Kessel will want a contract close to $4 million and Barker likely will be in the $2-2.5 million range. Their current teams will also extract a heavy cost in assets, likely draft choices and possibly some current roster players. Prospects like Maxim Goncharov and Chris Summers could also be in play.
Normally trading draft choices is verboten for a rebuilding team. But this is a win now team. Let's say you trade your 1st round pick for Kessel. You’ve added a proven young asset. You can only hope the draft pick turns out as good. That’s one way to be on strategy by continuing to build with youth but it would also dramatically help your chances of winning now.
There’s a lucky strike extra here too. The off-ice buzz this kind of dramatic move would generate could only help the franchise sell tickets.
2. Move Ed Jovanoski. Well, not so fast. Even though he’s doesn’t play up to his paycheck ($6.5 million) he’s still a quality top pair defenseman in the league. He would have to be replaced with a similar caliber player that carries a lower ticket. He could potentially be packaged in one of two ways.
Let’s say that a team below the Coyotes covets a certain player in the draft. Oh, for instance the Toronto Maple Leafs. Picking at 7th, the Leafs could swap picks and defensemen with the Yotes. Jovo goes to Toronto and Tomas Kaberle comes to the desert. It’s pretty much a talent wash but the Coyotes would get about $2 million in salary relief.
Or a team like the Philadelphia Flyers could come into play here. The Flyers desperately need a top pair defenseman and they want to move salary. They may target Florida’s UFA Jay Bouwmeester. If that fails perhaps they would be interested in moving some salary (the oft rumored Joffrey Lupul) and a talented defenseman (Matt Carle?) for Jovo. The Flyers get the top pair defenseman they want and move salary in the process. The Coyotes get two quality players for the cost of one and a half.
Of course, Jovo has a no-trade agreement that will have to be waived. Considering he is really the only bad contract the Coyotes own, I wouldn’t be surprised if Don Maloney hasn’t already visited with him and his representation about this possibility.
3. Take salary AND get assets in a trade. Give is your contracted, your rich, your huddled masses…
A few years ago, the San Jose Sharks obtained a 1st draft choice from the New Jersey Devils to take players off their hands so that the Devils could get under the cap. That could happen again this year. It’s possible that teams may approach the Coyotes and offer players and sweeten the pot with “future considerations” if they would take a bad contract. The problem with this route is that the contracts offered may be really long and really bad. This will be an option but don’t get too excited. There won’t be much value here.
4. And finally, there’s good old fashioned trading. Assert for asset. Most likely the reverse of last year’s Keith Ballard-Olli Jokinen trade with the Coyotes seeking help on defense in exchange for a forward.
Maloney's former employer, the New York Rangers, have long been one of Maloney's favorite trading partners. That pattern could continue this off season. One of the Coyotes biggest needs is are right handed shooting defensemen. The Rangers have 6 on their NHL roster and could be interested in moving one to fill some of their glaring holes on the wing.
If we are talking a talent for talent swap here, something along the lines of a Viktor Tikhonov for Bobby Sanguinetti trade could be possible. The Rangers need good young forwards. Sanguinetti was a former first round choice of Maloney's in New York, who is considered to be NHL ready after an impressive rookie season in the American Hockey League. Both teams fill a real need with players drafted in similar positions and each one year into their entry level contract.
It’s a real challenging problem. Stay true to youth. Build a franchise foundation. And, oh yes, win now! It will challenge Don Maloney in ways he never imagined when he took this job. And as the Coyotes face the most important summer ever, his work will go a long way to determining whether the team will succeed next year on and off the ice.
In fact, last year the Coyotes routinely played a minimum of 10 players with 2 or less years experience in the league. Phoenix iced the second youngest team in the league last season.
But now the team is in a quandary. Like it or not, this is a win now team. New owners, old owners or for that matter any owners cannot stand another $30 million dollar bloodbath. The only way to fix the financial condition of the team is to win. Now. Until the team on the ice turns the corner, the turnout in the stands will not materialize. No uptick in fan support and we’ll see more summers of wondering whether this team is here for the long haul.
Oh and by the way Don Maloney, you can spend to the salary cap floor. And be sure and get league approval before you make any long term contract commitments.
Gee, thanks.
If you read yesterday’s entry, you know that Maloney has somewhere in the neighborhood of $5-6million to get the two things the Coyotes really need – a high end goal scorer and a top 4 defenseman.
Oy.
So how do they do it?
Well, for starters this is not business as usual. It’s great that the Coyotes have the #6 and #36 pick in this draft. It’s great that they have Calgary’s #1 next year. And Philadelphia’s #2 the year after. Because they will need every one of those assets.
And free agency may or may not help. The uncertainty surrounding the team and the questions about whether there will be long term commitments available may make this a tougher sell. Derek Morris is the most obvious candidate but whether or not he will be affordable is a question.
The Coyotes brain trust needs to think outside of the box. Way outside of the box. Picking the best player available is a nice, safe strategy. It may set the next management team up for success.
So how do the Coyotes stay true to their (current) principles and win now?
Here are a few suggestions…
1. Trade assets, including draft picks for restricted free agents. There’s an interesting dynamic at play in the NHL right now. With so many teams bumping up against the cap, some very good young players may not be affordable to their current teams. Two very capable assets that are rumored to be available are 21 year-old (and 36 goal scorer) Phil Kessel of the Boston Bruins and 23-year-old defenseman Cam Barker of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Both players would fill glaring needs for the Yotes. Kessel is a dynamic goal scorer. Barker hasn’t been all that was hoped for when he was picked 3rd in the draft a few years ago but he contributes on offense (49 points) can run a power play and still has plenty of development time to round out his game.
Both of these players will come with a big ticket. Kessel will want a contract close to $4 million and Barker likely will be in the $2-2.5 million range. Their current teams will also extract a heavy cost in assets, likely draft choices and possibly some current roster players. Prospects like Maxim Goncharov and Chris Summers could also be in play.
Normally trading draft choices is verboten for a rebuilding team. But this is a win now team. Let's say you trade your 1st round pick for Kessel. You’ve added a proven young asset. You can only hope the draft pick turns out as good. That’s one way to be on strategy by continuing to build with youth but it would also dramatically help your chances of winning now.
There’s a lucky strike extra here too. The off-ice buzz this kind of dramatic move would generate could only help the franchise sell tickets.
2. Move Ed Jovanoski. Well, not so fast. Even though he’s doesn’t play up to his paycheck ($6.5 million) he’s still a quality top pair defenseman in the league. He would have to be replaced with a similar caliber player that carries a lower ticket. He could potentially be packaged in one of two ways.
Let’s say that a team below the Coyotes covets a certain player in the draft. Oh, for instance the Toronto Maple Leafs. Picking at 7th, the Leafs could swap picks and defensemen with the Yotes. Jovo goes to Toronto and Tomas Kaberle comes to the desert. It’s pretty much a talent wash but the Coyotes would get about $2 million in salary relief.
Or a team like the Philadelphia Flyers could come into play here. The Flyers desperately need a top pair defenseman and they want to move salary. They may target Florida’s UFA Jay Bouwmeester. If that fails perhaps they would be interested in moving some salary (the oft rumored Joffrey Lupul) and a talented defenseman (Matt Carle?) for Jovo. The Flyers get the top pair defenseman they want and move salary in the process. The Coyotes get two quality players for the cost of one and a half.
Of course, Jovo has a no-trade agreement that will have to be waived. Considering he is really the only bad contract the Coyotes own, I wouldn’t be surprised if Don Maloney hasn’t already visited with him and his representation about this possibility.
3. Take salary AND get assets in a trade. Give is your contracted, your rich, your huddled masses…
A few years ago, the San Jose Sharks obtained a 1st draft choice from the New Jersey Devils to take players off their hands so that the Devils could get under the cap. That could happen again this year. It’s possible that teams may approach the Coyotes and offer players and sweeten the pot with “future considerations” if they would take a bad contract. The problem with this route is that the contracts offered may be really long and really bad. This will be an option but don’t get too excited. There won’t be much value here.
4. And finally, there’s good old fashioned trading. Assert for asset. Most likely the reverse of last year’s Keith Ballard-Olli Jokinen trade with the Coyotes seeking help on defense in exchange for a forward.
Maloney's former employer, the New York Rangers, have long been one of Maloney's favorite trading partners. That pattern could continue this off season. One of the Coyotes biggest needs is are right handed shooting defensemen. The Rangers have 6 on their NHL roster and could be interested in moving one to fill some of their glaring holes on the wing.
If we are talking a talent for talent swap here, something along the lines of a Viktor Tikhonov for Bobby Sanguinetti trade could be possible. The Rangers need good young forwards. Sanguinetti was a former first round choice of Maloney's in New York, who is considered to be NHL ready after an impressive rookie season in the American Hockey League. Both teams fill a real need with players drafted in similar positions and each one year into their entry level contract.
It’s a real challenging problem. Stay true to youth. Build a franchise foundation. And, oh yes, win now! It will challenge Don Maloney in ways he never imagined when he took this job. And as the Coyotes face the most important summer ever, his work will go a long way to determining whether the team will succeed next year on and off the ice.
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