While much of the news surrounding the Coyotes has been about off-ice happenings this year, there is still a roster to assemble and a season to play.
GMDM has worked under extraordinary circumstances this summer. Give Maloney much credit for getting ANYONE to agree to come to Phoenix with all the uncertainty surrounding the team. In fact, he's managed to bring in some nice pieces.
And the Coyotes need all the nice pieces they can get. A playoff contending team is a necessity to get the town thinking about hockey again. It's tough to be a win-now team with a (close to) minimum budget.
The Coyotes success this season will start (and hopefully not stop) with their goaltending. Specifically Ilya Bryzgalov, the team's top goaltender must, must have a good season for the Coyotes to compete for a playoff spot. It's an imperative -- there's really no viable fallback position.
Last year, Ilya's play was wildly inconsistent. Catch him on a good night and the team had a chance to win. But on what turned out to be way too many bad nights, he was just awful. So awful that hockey's nicest man, Wayne Gretzky, publicly called out his goaltender. The Coyotes simply can't afford awful this year; their margin for error is too small.
I've never been sold on Bryz and in fact suggested last spring that the Coyotes might consider moving him and looking for a replacement. So far, his career has been built on two very good hot streaks -- through the end of the regular season and the playoffs for the 2006 Almighty Ducks (why did they ever drop that great name?) and a great run when he first joined the Coyotes in 2007. One of those streaks would be nice right now. What would be even nicer is a consistent season that delivers very good play over the long haul.
The alternatives in goal are not compelling. Jason LaBarbera was a curious free agent signing who has had a checkered career. Al Montoya's regular season in San Antonio was spotty last year but he was impressive in a late-season call up and training camp. His reward was a trip to San Antonio but if he plays well and others falter, he could be back in Phoenix quickly.
What will help is a more mobile and talented defense. Arguably, the team's two best off season acquisitions were backliners Adrian Aucoin and Jim Vandermeer. Aucoin is a minutes eater who will give the team excellent puck movement and an offensive threat to go with Ed Jovanoski. Vandemeer is oh, so slow but he plays with an edge and makes the backliner tougher. Sami Lepisto, a draft day acquisition from Washington, is another mobile player. Combined with returnees Jovanoski, Zbynek Michalek, Keith Yandle and Kurt Sauer, it's a deep and talented group.
It will need to be because the Coyotes will having trouble scoring goals. Shane Doan, who has scored 20+ goals 9 straight years, will continue to be the linchpin of the offense. But other than Doaner, no player has sever scored 20 or more twice in their carrer and only 4 (Vrbata, Lombardi, Mueller, Prucha) have even done it once.
Much of the hope for improved scoring will come from a return to rookie season form by Mueller and rapid improvement from last years first draft pick, Mikkel Boedker. The Coyotes also hope that late season acquisitions Matthew Lombardi and Scottie Upshall continue to benefit from increased ice time and raise their offensive production. They are also hoping that Radim Vrbata can repeat his lighting in a bottle season from 2007-08. About the only thing that is certain is that there's a lot of hope going on here.
Update 11:45 AM -- The Coyotes have helped their offense today. Pending a physical, the Coyotes have signed veteran NHL center (and 7 time 20 goal scorer) Robert Lang. Details forthcoming. Interesting move. Lang, 38, was 18-21-39 in 50 games for Montreal last year before suffering a torn Achilles tendon. Assuming he's healthy, it will be interesting to see what he has left in the tank. Could be an excellent signing.
Dave Tippett has a good group of accomplished checkers and defensive players available to form quality checking and penalty killing units. Newcomers Vernon Fiddler and Lauri Korpikoski are accomplished penalty killers and both have some offensive upside. They will join Marty Hanzal to give the team good defensive options. Tippett's work is cut out for him, the Coyotes were 29th in the league in penalty killing last year. Improvement here and on the power play are absolutely necessary for the team to be more competitive this year.
Perhaps what's as important are players who are no longer here. Derek Morris was listless and disinterested in his last Phoenix season. Olli Jokinen was disappointing on the ice and an apparent problem in the locker room. And David Hale and Todd Fedoruk were little more than bottom of the roster players. None will be missed.
The Coyotes should be sturdier on defense, better on special teams and faster than last years edition. They also have a well stocked farm team in San Antonio with numerous players motivated to get back to Phoenix. It should help keep roster players motivated knowing that reinforcements are only a phone call away.
For the 2009-10 Coyotes, it's all going to come down to goaltending and the ability to score goals. There are going to be a lot of tight games this year. There's not a lot of margin for error.
Oh, and some off ice clarity wouldn't hurt. It would allow the team to keep their focus where it most definitely needs to be -- on the ice.
Showing posts with label Vernon Fiddler. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vernon Fiddler. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
While (Judge) Tom Slept...
It's been 17 days since bids were tendered in the Coyotes bankruptcy and 5 days since an "emergency" hearing was held to hear the Moyes/Balsillie plea for mediation. A lot has happened in those 17 days.
The Coyotes have cut their training camp to 23 skaters. Surprises? Turris, MacLean, Tikhonov all head to San Antonio while Porter, Lepisto and Winnik make the big club. Management was sending out signals all summer that Turris needed AHL seasoning but it was surprising seeing Tikhonov go down. Turris doesn't have an NHL body right now and there's got to be concern within the organization that he may never become the impact player the team envisioned with the third overall pick. While Tikhonov was clearly rushed last year, his responsible defensive play and NHL size made this reassignment a surprise.
On the plus side, Porter has been noticeable at almost every practice and game I've seen. His play has clearly improved from a year ago. Lepisto is a mobile option on defense who has a nice feel for the game. He also is benefiting from 2 years of AHL seasoning (not a bad idea, eh?)in the Washington system. Vandemeer is oh so slow but he adds grit and experience and Vernon Fiddler is a carbon copy of the player he replaced, Steven Rupprecht.
The downside? Goals are going to be at a premium. It's hard to see this team scoring much more than last year. Unless the offense finds new life, this team will need every ounce of Dave Tippett's coaching skill to keep the goals allowed down and keep the team in games.
Tippett is the Coyotes new head coach. If you haven't heard already, this is the best news the franchise has had all year. Tippett is an accomplished coach who knows how to mold a responsible team. In 6 seasons in Dallas, his teams made the playoffs 5times and the 6th season was wrecked by injuries. His special teams are typically among the best in the league and his attention to team defense is exemplary. And he'll need every ounce of that coaching acumen to bring this team into the playoffs.
The Coyotes also came up with an inventive way of filling the arena on opening night by slashing ticket prices and calling for a the first white-out ever at Jobing.com arena. It appears to be working -- late word from Glendale is that under 2,000 tickets remain for the opener.
While much has happened over the last 17 days, what has not happened is any movement in the team's bankruptcy case.
While The Judge mulls over the case, much still remains unresolved. Opening night notwithstanding, ticket sales still have much ground to make up. A quick check of the dasher boards at an exhibition game showed at least 8 primary sponsor slots still available. Understandably but unfortunately, front office staffers have been jumping ship at an alarming rate.
If Judge Tom was truly committed to enhancing the value of the asset, he would have made the call on this case long ago. Every day that passes is a ticket that goes unsold, a marketing opportunity lost and a further degradation of the value of the asset. While the law needs to be adjudicated properly, this delay isn't helping the asset survive.
The Judge must understand by now that the two sides are not going to work this out. Meditation isn't going to solve the problem. You need two parties that want to settle for mediation to work. The NHL won't settle this case without anything less than a total and complete victory. They not only want to beat Jim Balsillie, they want to crush him. He's cost the league millions of dollars, plenty of bad publicity and much time and energy that could have been better spent elsewhere. Those transgressions will not be dismissed lightly. Or mediated away.
Judge Baum's decision will be appealed by either the NHL or Moyes or Glendale (or all three depending on what he comes back with) so it makes sense that it needs to be legally sound. That said, much of what he decides and writes will come directly out of his June 15th decision. So we'll wait, not very patiently, for the Judge to come in.
But we'll continue to caution him as well as anyone else who is listening that each day lost works directly against what he is supposed to prevent from happening.
The Coyotes have cut their training camp to 23 skaters. Surprises? Turris, MacLean, Tikhonov all head to San Antonio while Porter, Lepisto and Winnik make the big club. Management was sending out signals all summer that Turris needed AHL seasoning but it was surprising seeing Tikhonov go down. Turris doesn't have an NHL body right now and there's got to be concern within the organization that he may never become the impact player the team envisioned with the third overall pick. While Tikhonov was clearly rushed last year, his responsible defensive play and NHL size made this reassignment a surprise.
On the plus side, Porter has been noticeable at almost every practice and game I've seen. His play has clearly improved from a year ago. Lepisto is a mobile option on defense who has a nice feel for the game. He also is benefiting from 2 years of AHL seasoning (not a bad idea, eh?)in the Washington system. Vandemeer is oh so slow but he adds grit and experience and Vernon Fiddler is a carbon copy of the player he replaced, Steven Rupprecht.
The downside? Goals are going to be at a premium. It's hard to see this team scoring much more than last year. Unless the offense finds new life, this team will need every ounce of Dave Tippett's coaching skill to keep the goals allowed down and keep the team in games.
Tippett is the Coyotes new head coach. If you haven't heard already, this is the best news the franchise has had all year. Tippett is an accomplished coach who knows how to mold a responsible team. In 6 seasons in Dallas, his teams made the playoffs 5times and the 6th season was wrecked by injuries. His special teams are typically among the best in the league and his attention to team defense is exemplary. And he'll need every ounce of that coaching acumen to bring this team into the playoffs.
The Coyotes also came up with an inventive way of filling the arena on opening night by slashing ticket prices and calling for a the first white-out ever at Jobing.com arena. It appears to be working -- late word from Glendale is that under 2,000 tickets remain for the opener.
While much has happened over the last 17 days, what has not happened is any movement in the team's bankruptcy case.
While The Judge mulls over the case, much still remains unresolved. Opening night notwithstanding, ticket sales still have much ground to make up. A quick check of the dasher boards at an exhibition game showed at least 8 primary sponsor slots still available. Understandably but unfortunately, front office staffers have been jumping ship at an alarming rate.
If Judge Tom was truly committed to enhancing the value of the asset, he would have made the call on this case long ago. Every day that passes is a ticket that goes unsold, a marketing opportunity lost and a further degradation of the value of the asset. While the law needs to be adjudicated properly, this delay isn't helping the asset survive.
The Judge must understand by now that the two sides are not going to work this out. Meditation isn't going to solve the problem. You need two parties that want to settle for mediation to work. The NHL won't settle this case without anything less than a total and complete victory. They not only want to beat Jim Balsillie, they want to crush him. He's cost the league millions of dollars, plenty of bad publicity and much time and energy that could have been better spent elsewhere. Those transgressions will not be dismissed lightly. Or mediated away.
Judge Baum's decision will be appealed by either the NHL or Moyes or Glendale (or all three depending on what he comes back with) so it makes sense that it needs to be legally sound. That said, much of what he decides and writes will come directly out of his June 15th decision. So we'll wait, not very patiently, for the Judge to come in.
But we'll continue to caution him as well as anyone else who is listening that each day lost works directly against what he is supposed to prevent from happening.
Friday, August 14, 2009
The (Still Flawed) Coyotes Look To Be Staying...
The news from Judge Tom's court this week have given everyone renewed optimism that the Coyotes will have new owners, a new arena lease and a new outlook within the next few weeks.
They need all of the above because preparations are underway for the opening of training camp. In Phoenix. Rookies and selected younger players will be due in Arizona on September 5th and veterans will report on September 12th.
Which leads to two important questions; Is this the team we are going to war with and who is the coach going to be?
Over the next few days, I'll look at the team, options to improve the team and the coaching situation.
General Manager Don Maloney has a done a good job shopping the bargain aisle with the free agent signings of Vernon Fiddler, Jason Labarbera and Adrian Aucoin. We love the Aucoin and Fiddler moves but are concerned about Labarbera. That could become a moot point if Al Montoya expands on the promise he displayed late last year and wins the backup goaltending job.
Maloney has also been busy at the trade desk. He swapped two players with no future in Phoenix (Todd Fedoruk and David Hale) to Tampa for Radim Vrbata. GMDM will light a candle hoping that Vrbata can regain his goalscoring magic from the first half of the 2007-08 season. Lauri Korpikoski comes in from New York for the enigmatic Enver Lisin and gritty defenseman Jim Vandermeer comes over from Calgary for Brandon Prust. Vandermeer's contract is a little rich ($2.3MM) for a bottom pair defenseman and Vrbata has to live up to the $3MM contract he got from Tampa but on merit both trades make sense. We'll trust that Maloney couldn't find a better place to spend the money.
But this still leaves Phoenix with a flawed team. Right now, Shane Doan is the only player on the roster who scored more than 15 goals last season. In fact, Lombardi (1), Vrbata (1), Prucha (2) and Mueller (1) are the only Coyotes who have ever scored 20 goals in an NHL season. No matter how you add it up, this team still needs to add goalscoring. Lots of it.
There will be much hope for internal improvement. Mikkel Boedker may be the Yotes' best young forward and he should grow into a constant 25-35 goal scorer. Peter Mueller slid backwards in his sophomore season from 22 to 13 goals. A return to form would be very helpful. Scottie Upshall has long been buried on checking lines but in Phoenix he will get a chance to play top 6 minutes. After scoring 14 and 15 goals the last two years, he could upgrade his production. And there's Kyle Turris, who may not ever become a top goalscorer but hopefully will develop playmaking skills that enhance his teammates.
At the end of the day, that's a lot of hope. But, it's also a lot of "if's". Other teams in the Western Conference have beefed up too. The Coyotes desperately need to make the playoffs and the roster as currently constituted would do well to fight for a playoff spot.
There are still intriguing scorers available. According to many reports, Boston may have to move young forwards Phil Kessel or Chuck Kobasew. Free agents Alex Tanguay and well traveled veterans Miro Satan and Petr Sykora are still on the market.
I spoke to a Coyote official about Kessel and in a polite way, he indicated that Kessel probably wasn't what the team was looking for. His less than pristine attitude is well known and with best friend Blake Wheeler thumbing his nose at the Coyotes and joining him in Boston, it doesn't seem likely he would be thrilled about coming to Arizona.
Tanguay certainly is an option. It's been rumored that he's been close to signing with the Coyotes on multiple occasions. In fact, one popular rumor site went as far as to say he had signed with the Coyotes but his contract was rejected by the NHL because of budget concerns. In any event there's no deal in place but he is still available.
And then there's Dany Heatley. Heatley has made it clear he wants out of Ottawa. I never even though about Heatley and the Coyotes until I looked around the league at teams that might be able to digest his contract. There aren't many.
And it's a contract with some interesting angles. Heatley carries a salary cap hit of $7.5MM. That would seemingly disqualify the Coyotes under normal circumstances, but he has already collected $4MM this year, with an additional $4MM to be paid. Over the next four years, the Coyotes would take a $7.5MM cap hit but pay out an average of $6.75MM. If the Coyotes were looking at $3MM for Tanguay, bringing in Heatley for $4MM this year (with much more in the out years) would seem to make sense under the budget Don Maloney is managing.
That's a lot of money but Heatley is a lot of hockey player. He's connected for 260 goals in 7 NHL seasons and twice has passed the 50 mark. He is a special player unlike anyone who has worn a Coyote uniform in recent years.
And if the ownership situation is settled soon, new management could weigh in here. If and when the Reinsdorf-Kaites-Tavares-Reinsdorf Jr. group gets control of the team it would make sense that they would consider loosening the purse strings a little bit. And as experienced sports promoters and managers they understand that the best way to boost lagging ticket sales is to make some big news.
The Coyotes desperately need some juice to excite the fan base. Vern Fiddler and Adrian Aucoin are nice hockey players but they are not going to sell a lot of tickets. Heatley may not even want to come to Phoenix (and he would have to waive his no-trade clause) but it's sure worth a try. He would give the franchise a marquis name that is badly lacking, great offensive production on the ice and a generous helping of sizzle to help turn the page from this summer's debacle.
What would it take to make a deal? An educated guess would be Peter Mueller, one of the team's prize young defensemen (Goncharov, Summers or Ross) and probably a 1st draft choice. (This is similar to a deal the New York Rangers supposedly had in place with Ottawa earlier this summer) Expensive, yes. Well worth the price? You bet! Ottawa wants to get younger and has a real salary cap problem. If Maloney could get all the stars aligned on this one, he would have solved the team's biggest problem with a bold and imaginative move. And he would probably carry those guys on his back to Ottawa to make the deal.
The legal and ownership issues can't be solved soon enough. Rookie camp starts in less than three weeks. Our first exhibition game is on September 15th. And opening night is less than two months away. And there's still work to be done on this roster.
We'll all feel better when the focus is back on the game and the team rather than the circus.
They need all of the above because preparations are underway for the opening of training camp. In Phoenix. Rookies and selected younger players will be due in Arizona on September 5th and veterans will report on September 12th.
Which leads to two important questions; Is this the team we are going to war with and who is the coach going to be?
Over the next few days, I'll look at the team, options to improve the team and the coaching situation.
General Manager Don Maloney has a done a good job shopping the bargain aisle with the free agent signings of Vernon Fiddler, Jason Labarbera and Adrian Aucoin. We love the Aucoin and Fiddler moves but are concerned about Labarbera. That could become a moot point if Al Montoya expands on the promise he displayed late last year and wins the backup goaltending job.
Maloney has also been busy at the trade desk. He swapped two players with no future in Phoenix (Todd Fedoruk and David Hale) to Tampa for Radim Vrbata. GMDM will light a candle hoping that Vrbata can regain his goalscoring magic from the first half of the 2007-08 season. Lauri Korpikoski comes in from New York for the enigmatic Enver Lisin and gritty defenseman Jim Vandermeer comes over from Calgary for Brandon Prust. Vandermeer's contract is a little rich ($2.3MM) for a bottom pair defenseman and Vrbata has to live up to the $3MM contract he got from Tampa but on merit both trades make sense. We'll trust that Maloney couldn't find a better place to spend the money.
But this still leaves Phoenix with a flawed team. Right now, Shane Doan is the only player on the roster who scored more than 15 goals last season. In fact, Lombardi (1), Vrbata (1), Prucha (2) and Mueller (1) are the only Coyotes who have ever scored 20 goals in an NHL season. No matter how you add it up, this team still needs to add goalscoring. Lots of it.
There will be much hope for internal improvement. Mikkel Boedker may be the Yotes' best young forward and he should grow into a constant 25-35 goal scorer. Peter Mueller slid backwards in his sophomore season from 22 to 13 goals. A return to form would be very helpful. Scottie Upshall has long been buried on checking lines but in Phoenix he will get a chance to play top 6 minutes. After scoring 14 and 15 goals the last two years, he could upgrade his production. And there's Kyle Turris, who may not ever become a top goalscorer but hopefully will develop playmaking skills that enhance his teammates.
At the end of the day, that's a lot of hope. But, it's also a lot of "if's". Other teams in the Western Conference have beefed up too. The Coyotes desperately need to make the playoffs and the roster as currently constituted would do well to fight for a playoff spot.
There are still intriguing scorers available. According to many reports, Boston may have to move young forwards Phil Kessel or Chuck Kobasew. Free agents Alex Tanguay and well traveled veterans Miro Satan and Petr Sykora are still on the market.
I spoke to a Coyote official about Kessel and in a polite way, he indicated that Kessel probably wasn't what the team was looking for. His less than pristine attitude is well known and with best friend Blake Wheeler thumbing his nose at the Coyotes and joining him in Boston, it doesn't seem likely he would be thrilled about coming to Arizona.
Tanguay certainly is an option. It's been rumored that he's been close to signing with the Coyotes on multiple occasions. In fact, one popular rumor site went as far as to say he had signed with the Coyotes but his contract was rejected by the NHL because of budget concerns. In any event there's no deal in place but he is still available.
And then there's Dany Heatley. Heatley has made it clear he wants out of Ottawa. I never even though about Heatley and the Coyotes until I looked around the league at teams that might be able to digest his contract. There aren't many.
And it's a contract with some interesting angles. Heatley carries a salary cap hit of $7.5MM. That would seemingly disqualify the Coyotes under normal circumstances, but he has already collected $4MM this year, with an additional $4MM to be paid. Over the next four years, the Coyotes would take a $7.5MM cap hit but pay out an average of $6.75MM. If the Coyotes were looking at $3MM for Tanguay, bringing in Heatley for $4MM this year (with much more in the out years) would seem to make sense under the budget Don Maloney is managing.
That's a lot of money but Heatley is a lot of hockey player. He's connected for 260 goals in 7 NHL seasons and twice has passed the 50 mark. He is a special player unlike anyone who has worn a Coyote uniform in recent years.
And if the ownership situation is settled soon, new management could weigh in here. If and when the Reinsdorf-Kaites-Tavares-Reinsdorf Jr. group gets control of the team it would make sense that they would consider loosening the purse strings a little bit. And as experienced sports promoters and managers they understand that the best way to boost lagging ticket sales is to make some big news.
The Coyotes desperately need some juice to excite the fan base. Vern Fiddler and Adrian Aucoin are nice hockey players but they are not going to sell a lot of tickets. Heatley may not even want to come to Phoenix (and he would have to waive his no-trade clause) but it's sure worth a try. He would give the franchise a marquis name that is badly lacking, great offensive production on the ice and a generous helping of sizzle to help turn the page from this summer's debacle.
What would it take to make a deal? An educated guess would be Peter Mueller, one of the team's prize young defensemen (Goncharov, Summers or Ross) and probably a 1st draft choice. (This is similar to a deal the New York Rangers supposedly had in place with Ottawa earlier this summer) Expensive, yes. Well worth the price? You bet! Ottawa wants to get younger and has a real salary cap problem. If Maloney could get all the stars aligned on this one, he would have solved the team's biggest problem with a bold and imaginative move. And he would probably carry those guys on his back to Ottawa to make the deal.
The legal and ownership issues can't be solved soon enough. Rookie camp starts in less than three weeks. Our first exhibition game is on September 15th. And opening night is less than two months away. And there's still work to be done on this roster.
We'll all feel better when the focus is back on the game and the team rather than the circus.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Day Two of Free Agency...Give The Coyotes an "A"
Give the Coyotes an “A” for their latest free agent signing.
A as in Adrian Aucoin. This is more like what I had in mind for this off season. This is a good, potentially great signing.
Aucoin is a horse. He played 22 minutes a game this year for a very good Calgary team. He scored 10 goals in each of the last two seasons totaling 34 and 35 points. And even though he’s slowed down a little at age 35, he still is a strong skater and a steadying influence.
All of this on a very flexible one year contract for $2.25MM. Or said another way, $50,000 less than Jim Vandermeer. Still think that wasn’t part of the Jokinen deal and was made in March?
So what is going on as NHL free agency completes its’ second full day? Well for starters, star players still got star money. Gaborik for $7.5MM in New York. Havlat for $5MM in Minnesota. And Hossa for ever in Chicago.
But the second wave of free agent signings seems to be coming much more slowly. Only about half as many players signed on the second day this year compared to last year. And by my count, there are still over 30 players who made $2MM or more last year who have not yet signed new contracts.
Aucoin was squarely in that group. He made $4MM last year finishing off a 4 year contract he signed after the lockout with the Chicago Blackhawks. He took a big pay cut and a one year contract to get a seat at the table. Others will likely be in the same position.
It’s unlikely that a Robert Lang or Alex Kovalev will drop far enough to be in Don Maloney’s price bracket but some good offensive players who might are Ales Kotalik ($2.5MM last year), Maxim Afinogenov ($3.5MM), Mikael Samuelsson ($1.2MM) and Petr Sykora ($2.5MM). There’s also the possibility of a trade that brings a contracted player to the Coyotes.
Even with the signings of Aucoin, Vernon Fiddler, Jason LaBarbera and the acquisition of Jim Vandermeer, the Coyotes are still hovering around the salary cap floor. It appears there’s room for one more contract and that will almost certainly be a scorer.
Like much of the television advertising we see these days, prices have never been better. And better yet, operators are standing by. That’s great news when dollars are tight and your needs are great.
GMDM, Shop till they tell you to stop!
A as in Adrian Aucoin. This is more like what I had in mind for this off season. This is a good, potentially great signing.
Aucoin is a horse. He played 22 minutes a game this year for a very good Calgary team. He scored 10 goals in each of the last two seasons totaling 34 and 35 points. And even though he’s slowed down a little at age 35, he still is a strong skater and a steadying influence.
All of this on a very flexible one year contract for $2.25MM. Or said another way, $50,000 less than Jim Vandermeer. Still think that wasn’t part of the Jokinen deal and was made in March?
So what is going on as NHL free agency completes its’ second full day? Well for starters, star players still got star money. Gaborik for $7.5MM in New York. Havlat for $5MM in Minnesota. And Hossa for ever in Chicago.
But the second wave of free agent signings seems to be coming much more slowly. Only about half as many players signed on the second day this year compared to last year. And by my count, there are still over 30 players who made $2MM or more last year who have not yet signed new contracts.
Aucoin was squarely in that group. He made $4MM last year finishing off a 4 year contract he signed after the lockout with the Chicago Blackhawks. He took a big pay cut and a one year contract to get a seat at the table. Others will likely be in the same position.
It’s unlikely that a Robert Lang or Alex Kovalev will drop far enough to be in Don Maloney’s price bracket but some good offensive players who might are Ales Kotalik ($2.5MM last year), Maxim Afinogenov ($3.5MM), Mikael Samuelsson ($1.2MM) and Petr Sykora ($2.5MM). There’s also the possibility of a trade that brings a contracted player to the Coyotes.
Even with the signings of Aucoin, Vernon Fiddler, Jason LaBarbera and the acquisition of Jim Vandermeer, the Coyotes are still hovering around the salary cap floor. It appears there’s room for one more contract and that will almost certainly be a scorer.
Like much of the television advertising we see these days, prices have never been better. And better yet, operators are standing by. That’s great news when dollars are tight and your needs are great.
GMDM, Shop till they tell you to stop!
Yawn...
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.
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.
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