With training camps beginning in the near future, PTO season is basically upon us. The Coyotes had already put one player on their invite list in center Frederik Gauthier but GM Bill Armstrong confirmed to Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider reports (Twitter link) that goaltender Zane McIntyre has signed a tryout deal as well.
The 28-year-old was once viewed as one of Boston’s goaltenders of the future after a stellar three-year NCAA career at North Dakota but it didn’t really translate to much success at the professional level. He got into eight games with the Bruins back in 2016-17 but that’s it for his NHL experience. Last season, he spent most of the year in Vancouver’s system before being flipped to New Jersey for Louis Domingue at the trade deadline. Between the two minor league teams, he had a 15-10-2 record with a 2.80 GAA and a .908 SV%.
After not receiving any NHL interest early in free agency, McIntyre opted to go to the KHL, signing with Dinamo Riga. However, after posting a 4.65 GAA and a .796 SV% in six appearances, he was released on Monday which allows him to go to camp with Arizona.
On the surface, it would appear that the Coyotes are either eyeing McIntyre for the taxi squad role or to have him in the minors with Adin Hill serving as the mandatory third goalie. With only 44 contracts used out of 50, they’ll have ample room to sign him if he has a good showing when their training camp begins on January 3rd.