The free agent period is now less than one month away from opening up and there are several prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign. Here is a breakdown of Arizona’s free agent situation.
Key Restricted Free Agents: F Anthony Duclair – 2016-17 was a tough season for the 21 year old. After putting up 20 goals and 44 points in 81 games in his first season in the desert, he had just five goals and 15 points in 58 NHL contests this season. He was also sent to the AHL where he managed just a single tally in 16 games. Given the success he had prior to this past season, he could still make a case that he’s worthy of a decent raise coming off his entry-level deal. His struggles have led to some speculation that he could be dealt during the offseason. If he’s not, a one year contract would be a likely outcome to see if he gets back to his sophomore season form before giving him a sizable pay jump.
F Alexander Burmistrov – The Russian center made a pretty good impression after being picked up off the waiver wire from Winnipeg, collecting 14 points in 26 games while seeing his ice time jump to over 15 minutes per game. However, he is due a qualifying offer of $1.6MM which may be a bit too high for Arizona’s liking considering how much he struggled with the Jets. GM John Chayka will have a decision to make as to whether he’s worth that qualifier or whether they’d be better suited to not tender him one and then try to negotiate a cheaper deal later on.
Other RFAs: F Grayson Downing, F Tyler Gaudet, F Peter Holland, F Josh Jooris, G Marek Langhamer, F Jordan Martinook, F Jeremy Morin, F Mitch Moroz, F Teemu Pulkkinen, F Branden Troock
Key Unrestricted Free Agents: F Shane Doan – While he’s coming off a down season, there’s no doubting that Doan remains the face of the franchise in Arizona. The 40 year old has suggested in the past that he wouldn’t likely go elsewhere in free agency (although he was reportedly open to moving as a rental player at the trade deadline if the perfect situation were to come up). If he were to sign on for another season, it would likely come at a rate below the $3.86MM base salary (before performance and signing bonus deferred payments) he earned this past season.
F Radim Vrbata – Vrbata is coming off a resurgent season after returning to the desert on a one year, incentive-laden contract last offseason. With 55 points, he’s the second highest point producer that’s slated to hit the open market; only Washington’s T.J. Oshie (56) had more. The soon-to-be 36 year old has had success in each of his three stints with the Coyotes but has been inconsistent when he’s with other organizations. Despite that, the weak free agent market should help him land a lot more than the $1MM in guaranteed money he settled for last summer.
Other UFAs: D Jamie McBain, D Zbynek Michalek, F Chris Mueller, F Garret Ross, D Jarred Tinordi, F Joe Whitney
Projected Cap Space: After finishing the season in LTIR with zero cap space having taken on several large contracts for players who weren’t playing for them, Arizona has just over $47MM committed to 17 players per CapFriendly, giving them plenty of room to work with under the cap. However, they’re a lower budget team so it’s not likely that they’ll be adding big ticket deals in free agency but it wouldn’t be surprising to see them try to take on a cumbersome deal for a player who’s out long-term in exchange for a younger asset, something Chayka has already done in his brief stint as GM.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Love to see what Arizona has done the last couple of years. Organization definitely trending upwards a lot faster than people are giving credit for.