The Coyotes failed to trade Radem Vrbata at today's deadline.
Coyotes GM John Chayka said he set threshold for trading Radim Vrbata. It wasn't met. Happy to keep Vrbata. Chance to re-sign him in summer.
— Craig Morgan (@craigsmorgan) March 1, 2017
This is a complete failure. It's horrible management.
Say the threshold isn't met by 2:50, you get on the phone and lower the price.
Vrbata is a free agent. The Coyotes have a zero percent chance at the playoffs. Playing him takes minutes from developing young players.
There is no reason for Schenn, Smith, Doan, Murphy, and especially Vrbata to still be on this team. It's a complete waste of assets to not get something, anything for these players.
And the Coyotes will never, ever turn the page until Doan, Murphy, Smith and Vrbata are gone. Just too many holdovers from a team that has been crap for years.
Not only do the Coyotes fail to get anything in return for diminishing assets. They also fail to get worse and increase the value of their upcoming first round pick.
The Coyotes have one of the game's most intersting young GM's. They also have an old-school coach with more power than the GM. It's not working. Everything they do seems to be in two different directions.
If you're rebuilding, why don't you play the kids?
Why are PP minutes going to geezers?
If you're going to be bad anyways, why not fully tank?
There isn't a more frustrating, identity-less, directionless team in the NHL and probably in professional sports.
The Coyotes need to get ownership out of the decision making process.
They need to fire Dave Tippett.
They need to give John Chayka full autonomy.
Beacuse what they are doing now is a contradictory mess. It's a complete and utter joke/failure that Vrbata is still a Coyote. It makes absolutely no sense.
The Coyotes made a good move in somehow getting a first-rounder for Hanzal. But by not doing anything today, they have embarrassed themselves by failing massively.