Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

What to Do With the Coyotes' Free Agents?

April 28, 2016, 8:04 PM ET [16 Comments]
James Tanner
Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT


Why not kill some time thinking about a team that didn't qualify for the Playoffs while we kill some time until two good teams are ready to play?

Actually, don't answer that.

Still though, the Coyotes do present an intriguing situation this off-season: they hardly have anyone under contract for next year, just 11 players, five of whom should not be back, regardless of their contract situation (Vermette, Michalek, Martinhook, Vitale, Richardson) and a sixth, Chris Pronger, who has been retired long enough that (I'm pretty sure) he's already in the Hall of Fame. (Just checked, he is).

The Coyotes are sure to be an interesting team to watch this off-season because they don't have a GM, they (apparently) plan to completely change their organizational philosophy, have two first round picks, might have trouble getting to the cap-floor and need to basically hire an entire team worth of players, as they have four returning players worth keeping who are currently signed (Hanzal, OEL, Domi, Duclair) and one (Mike Smith) that they have basically no choice but to keep due to his hazardous and ridiculous contract.

This presents a bit of a logistical problem in that if you only have five should-be returning players, it means that you're more than likely going to end up keeping some duds. So prepare for the fact that you might have to keep watching Michalek or Vermette next year.

Needless to say, predicting who they might promote or trade for at this point is pretty useless, but we can at least go through their free-agents and see what they should do:



Shane Doan, UFA: The Coyotes will likely re-sign him because he's a local hero. However, his presence hangs so heavily over this team I think a clean break might be best. That isn't to say he doesn't have anything to offer, but I think his absence would arguably allow for a new leadership contingent to emerge, and that isn't likely to happen if Doan, Smith, Michalek and Vermette stay.

I say thank Doan for his service and throw him a hell of a party. But don't re-sign him.

Alex Tanguay, UFA: Continues to be a cerebral and effective player despite declining skills. He's a great guy to have because he's probably always going to be effective given that he's had years to adjust to not being the player he used to be and has managed to remain effective.

He could still suit up for a contender. Definitely re-sign him.

Boyd Gordon, UFA: Here's a good reason the Coyotes missed the Playoffs: They let Boyd Gordon play in 65 games and paid him $3 million dollars to do so. A more effective use of money would be to use that money to finance a one-man show starring Rob Schneider.

most definitely do not sign him.

Viktor Tikhonov, UFA: If you are wondering whether or not resigning Tikhonov is a good idea, you have never seen him play. Pass.

Jiri Sekac, RFA: A solid addition to any team, Sekac was a great claim by Don Maloney and he should definitely be re-signed.

Sergei Plotnikov ,RFA: He only played in 13 games and recorded just one point, but he was an even possession player, is 25, has size and can probably play a decent fourth line in the NHL. I'd sign him for depth. He'd be cheap, so why not?



Kyle Chipchura, UFA: He had a bad year, but in the past I always thought he was really underrated. I'd re-sign him, certainly he's better than a lot of the other options. But, if they don't sign him, I would't be too sore either. He's a fourth liner at best.

Tobias Reider, RFA: He's due a good raise and is one of the better forwards on the team. You don't want to lose him for nothing and he'll help you, so definitely re-sign.

Nicklas Grossmann, UFA: Quite simply one of the least effective players in all of the NHL. He should not be re-signed under any circumstances.

Michael Stone, RFA: He can't be the second or third best defensemen on an NHL team,, but he's decent and has value so he has to be re-signed with the hope the team acquires some players to push him down the depth chart. He'd be a very good third pairing guy.

Connor Murphy, RFA: If you wrote a story and the main character was an Irish guy called 'Connor Murphy' you'd be criticized for giving him such a generic, cliched name, but in real life he's a hockey player in Arizona, which is wicked awesome.

Anyways, he's a good puck mover, but he shouldn't be on the top pairing I don't think. Still, re-sign him.

Jared Tinordi, Keven Connauton, Klaus Dahlbeck, RFAs: These guys do not get re-signed. Re-signing any of them would be ridiculous. I guess since they're so thin they might sign them, but if any of them is on the NHL team next seasons, that's a guaranteed lotto pick, so I really hope not.



Connauton, I guess, could be alright. Certainly he's not as bad as Dahlbeck, who rivals Grossmann for worst-in-the-league.

Anyways, there's your run-down on the Coyotes and their free-agents. If you are a fan of the team, I hope you have your Prozac handy.

It will be interesting to see how the team goes through this process and how closely they'll follow my way of thinking. Either way, if they want to improve the team, they are going to have to have some massive turnover this summer.

Thanks for reading.

All stats waronice.com
Join the Discussion: » 16 Comments » Post New Comment
More from James Tanner
» I am Just Curious If This Works
» NHL At Least Tries to do the Right Thing
» The NHL Cannot Remain Apolitical and Must Show Leadership
» Time for a New Coach to Go Along with the New G.M
» Coyotes Eliminated Following Severe Beating