Michael Carcone Will Test Free Agency

Utah winger Michael Carcone isn’t interested in re-signing with the Club and will test unrestricted free agency this summer, he told reporters during today’s exit meetings (via Brogan Houston of Deseret News).

Carcone said he was looking for more consistent playing time, something he definitely didn’t get in Utah following his breakout 21-goal season with the Coyotes last year. The 28-year-old was in the press box for long stretches of the campaign, including an eight-game streak near the beginning of the season. He also spent nine of Utah’s final 10 games as a healthy scratch as Utah chased but ultimately fell short of a postseason berth.

When dressed, Carcone was similarly productive on a per-game basis as he was last year in Arizona. He wasn’t scoring goals at the clip he did in 2023-24, but upped his assist tally to make up for it. He finished the year with 7-12–19 in 53 games, a 29-point pace over a full season. That’s fine production for a diminutive third or fourth-line scoring forward like Carcone. He averaged 11:26 per game and shot at a 9.3% clip, less than half of the 18.9% finishing rate that fueled last year’s goal-scoring performance.

The Ontario native is two years removed from an AHL scoring title, posting 31-54–85 in 65 games with Tucson in the 2022-23 season. He’s stuck on NHL rosters in Arizona and Utah since then on the two-year, $1.55MM contract he signed in the 2023 offseason. He’s shown enough staying power at the NHL level to earn a small pay bump this summer. AFP Analytics projected a one-year, $1MM extension if he was to stay in Utah, a deal he could likely improve upon slightly on the open market.

Thus, look for teams in need of a tertiary scoring option to look to Carcone as a high-upside option that won’t break the bank. Cap-conscious teams looking to augment their depth scoring next year like the Predators, Bruins, and Wild could be fits of mutual interest.