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2018-19 King Clancy Finalists Announced

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The NHL has released the finalists for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy. The award is given to “the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community.” Last season was the first time it was awarded to a pair of players, as the Vancouver Canucks’ Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin took home the trophy for their long history of helping the Vancouver community.

Each team nominated one player for the award. The finalists are:

Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Arizona Coyotes

Jason Zucker, Minnesota Wild

Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers

Arizona Coyotes To Target Scoring This Off-Season

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The Arizona Coyotes missed out on the postseason this year by a mere four points. While a success overall for the rebuilding club, the Coyotes struggled greatly on offense. The team’s 209 goals for were tied for third-worst in the NHL and their 16.3% power play success rate was sixth-worst. Behind stellar goaltending from Darcy Kuemper and strong team defense, the team largely got the job done, but they need to improve their scoring if they want to take the next step.

It’s thus no surprise that both Richard Morin of Arizona Republic and Craig Morgan of The Athletic write that Arizona will be looking to add a prominent scoring forward this summer. GM John Chayka would seem to agree:

I think to understand what we need to do to improve is pretty simple: We need to score more goals. I think anytime someone’s going through and trying to diagnose what you need to do to take that next step, that’s not the complicated part or complex part. I think what we need to understand and work through is, how do we score more goals? How do we create more offense, while maintaining that fundamental foundation of being a good stingy, defensive team.

Among the top options – albeit unlikely – for the Coyotes on the free agent market would be Columbus Blue Jackets stars Artemi Panarin and Matt Duchene, Buffalo Sabres’ standout Jeff Skinner, or any of the New York Islanders’ trio of Anders Lee, Jordan Eberle, and Brock Nelson. All of these forwards are prime talents, but may not be available to Arizona. Both Skinner and Lee are expected to re-sign with their current teams, as could Eberle or Nelson, while Panarin and Duchene are likely outside the Coyotes’ price range. More accessible free agent scorers could include Ryan Dzingel, Gustav Nyquist, Wayne Simmonds, or Brett Connolly, one or two of which would be a major boost to Arizona’s offense.

Morgan also adds that several cap-strapped teams could be forced to move talented forwards, leaving the Coyotes in places to scoop up valuable players at a discount. The Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets, and Tampa Bay Lightning are all in a tough spot, leaving the likes of Kasperi Kapanen, Andreas Johnsson, William Nylander, Nikolaj Ehlers, Mathieu Perreault, Ondrej Palat, J.T. Miller, or Alex Killorn possibly up for grabs.

Either by signing or trade, the Coyotes are likely to add a prominent forward or two and are expected to target wingers rather than centers. Arizona will be a team to watch this off-season as they target several of the aforementioned top names.

Morning Notes: Gronborg, Hayton, Hughes

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There are still quite a few coaching vacancies around the NHL after some of the big names have been snatched up in recent days, and Scott Burnside of The Athletic (subscription required) breaks down all the expected candidates in a new piece. While the scribe details everyone from Dave Tippett to Scott Sandelin, one interesting name appears with a connection to the Buffalo Sabres. Burnside notes that after missing out on Todd McLellan recently, the Sabres threw Rikard Gronborg’s name “into the mix” for their head coaching positions.

Gronborg is an extremely well respected name in international coaching circles, but it would certainly be an out of the box hire for the Sabres as he doesn’t have any previous NHL experience. Still, there were rumors that GM Jason Botterill considered Ralph Kruger during his last head coaching search, and he is likely turning over every possible stone to try and find the right fit for his flailing organization.

  • Barrett Hayton finished his OHL season with 82 points in 50 combined regular season and playoff games, the expected big step forward in production after being the fifth-overall pick last June. His development has gone so well that Craig Morgan of The Athletic (subscription required) suggests that he may even compete for a roster spot with the Arizona Coyotes for the coming season, despite not turning 19 until this June. Hayton will be too young to be eligible for the AHL as he was drafted out of the CHL, meaning he’ll have to go back to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds if he fails to make the Coyotes roster. While that’s not a death sentence for his development, it certainly might not be the best place for him after all he showed this season.
  • If you wanted proof that Jack Hughes was a little bit ahead of his fellow draft eligible players, he’s providing it at the U18 World Championship. After a quiet opening game with just a single point, Hughes recorded seven in his second game of the tournament and already has a goal in today’s matchup with Russia. The potential first-overall pick is doing his best to show he still belongs at the top of every draft board, while others like Cole Caufield and Alex Turcotte continue to impress.

AHL Notes: Studnicka, Conway, Bouchard, Jones, Howdeshell

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The Providence Bruins face the tall task of defeating the Charlotte Checkers in their first-round match-up of the Calder Cup Playoffs, after Charlotte’s historic season earned them the top seed in the Eastern Conference. If Providence is able to do so, it will likely be in no small part due to the efforts of their newest addition. Forward Jack Studnicka, the Boston Bruins’ 2017 second-round pick and the player considered by many to be their top prospect, has joined Providence following the end of his junior season. In a strange turnaround, Studnicka and the stacked Niagara Ice Dogs simply could not figure out fellow Bruins prospect Kyle Keyser in net and were surprisingly knocked off by his Oshawa Generals in the second round of the OHL Playoffs. Oshawa had traded Studnicka to Niagara earlier in the season, yet somehow emerged from the match-up with their former captain. Now, Stunicka has to move on from his junior season and try to help Providence immediately in their own playoff run. He was able to make an instant impact last year, recording five points in five games with the P-Bruins. This time around, he could be an even bigger threat. Studnicka scored at better than a point-per-game pace with both Oshawa and Niagara this season, totaling 83 points in 60 games. He’s also trying to impress the Boston brass, as Studnicka’s OHL career is over and this is his first step toward cracking the Bruins’ roster next season. Adding a motivated and talented top prospect to the mix should be a major boost for Providence.

The P-Bruins have also added a local product to the roster, reports Mark Divver of The Providence Journal. Divver writes that Providence College senior Scott Conway has joined the team and has signed a one-year AHL contract as well. Conway, 24, is coming off an interesting collegiate career, in which he showed consistent success but also flashed next-level ability that never fully manifested. After his freshman year at Penn State University, in which he recorded a respectable 26 points in 34 games, Conway opted to leave the program and played the 2015-16 season outside of the NCAA with the BCHL’s Penticton Vees. Conway was a star in the BCHL, amassing a league-leading 116 points while skating alongside Colorado Avalanche center Tyson Jost and quickly committed to a new college team in Providence. Yet, in three seasons with the Friars, Conway’s numbers were no better than they were with the Nittany Lions. It’s thus unclear what the ceiling may be for the experienced English forward, who dominated the junior-A level, but failed to reach stardom at the college level. The Bruins likely got a good look at the local product and willing to see what he can bring to the table next season.

  • Like Studnicka, two other highly-touted junior prospects have also joined their respective AHL teams for the playoff run. Defenseman Evan Bouchard, who played in seven games with the Edmonton Oilers to begin the season, has been assigned to the Bakersfield Condors, the team announced. Last year’s tenth overall pick notched 53 points in 45 games with the OHL’s London Knights this year and added another three points at the World Juniors with Team Canada. Bouchard is a near-lock to make the Oilers out of camp next season and can further improve those odds with a strong stretch of play for the Condors. Ben Jones, a seventh-round pick of the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017, has already proven to be a steal and will look to advance that title with his first pro experience. A teammate of Studnicka’s in Niagara, Jones led the team with 102 points on the year, but was held in check in the postseason compared to his fellow Ice Dogs standouts. Nevertheless, Jones will still be an exciting addition for the Chicago Wolves after a top-ten scoring season in the OHL. Having graduated from the junior level, this is also a peak into what’s in store for Jones next season in the pros.
  • Like Conway, another promising undrafted prospect has been brought in by an AHL team just prior to the postseason, only that team didn’t qualify for the postseason. Forward Keeghan Howdeshell of the OHL’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds has signed a one-year deal with the Tuscon Roadrunners, his former club revealed. The Roadrunners are already looking ahead to next season after failing to grab one of the final spots in the Western Conference playoff picture, much like their parent club. Howdeshell, 21, finished tied for second in scoring for the Greyhounds this year with 77 points in 66 games. The U.S. National Team Development Program product seemed likely to be drafted but was instead passed over several times. He has since re-established his value and will look to translate his game to the pro level with Tuscon next season. A strong campaign could lead to Howdeshell earning an entry-level deal with the Arizona Coyotes.

2019 NHL Draft Lottery Results

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The ping pong balls have been drawn and the first 15 picks of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft are set. The league conducted its annual Draft Lottery tonight and the big winners were the New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers, and Chicago Blackhawks. The Devils, with an 11.5% chance of winning the No. 1 overall selection, did just that and astoundingly will have their pick of the class for the second time in three years. New Jersey won the draft lottery in 2017 and selected Nico Hischier and will have the chance to add another elite talent this year. This continues the almost comical lottery luck that has followed Taylor Hall in his career, moving from Edmonton to New Jersey. The Rangers held a 7.8% chance of moving up to the second overall pick and in this specific draft class were very lucky as well, as their consolation prize will be the second of two elite players at the top of the draft board. This will also be the first time in the modern draft era that New York selects within the first three picks. The Blackhawks may have a more difficult choice facing them at No. 3, but aren’t complaining after jumping from No. 12 into the top three, a move that had just a 3% chance of happening. Chicago has been a dynastic franchise this decade and will look to return to greatness by adding one of the draft’s top talents. Altogether, these three teams all moving up in this order was a result that had just a 0.027% chance of occurring.

Following the lottery results, the odds for which were set by the final league standings for non-playoff teams, the first half of the first round will play out as follows:

  1. New Jersey Devils
  2. New York Rangers
  3. Chicago Blackhawks
  4. Colorado Avalanche (from Ottawa Senators)
  5. Los Angeles Kings
  6. Detroit Red Wings
  7. Buffalo Sabres
  8. Edmonton Oilers
  9. Anaheim Ducks
  10. Vancouver Canucks
  11. Philadelphia Flyers
  12. Minnesota Wild
  13. Florida Panthers
  14. Arizona Coyotes
  15. Montreal Canadiens

The biggest loser of the night has to be the Colorado Avalanche, who fall out of the top three spots despite having a 49.4% chance of winning at least one of the those picks. This is the second time in just three years that Colorado has entered the lottery with the best odds at No. 1, only see three teams win the lottery and pass them up. In 2017, it was again the Devils who stole their top pick. After swindling the Ottawa Senators, it seemed the Avs were destined to cash in, but instead end up with the worst-case scenario. The Los Angeles Kings also have to be unhappy with the results, as the team slides from their second-to-last finish to the fifth overall pick. The Kings desperately could have used an injection of elite young talent next season and may not end up with an immediate contributor at No. 5. While they didn’t have the best of odds, the Vancouver Canucks are undoubtedly still disappointed in missing out on an opportunity to pair Jack Hughes with older brother Quinn Hughes, the team’s first-round pick in 2018 who already made a splash in his first few pro games down the stretch, or to at least make a top-three selection in front of the home crowd.

The younger Hughes, who was actually in attendance at tonight’s lottery event, has of course long been considered the likely top pick this spring and should start getting used to the idea of playing in New Jersey. The U.S. National Team center is considered a high-end play-maker already and turned down a scholarship to the University of Michigan earlier this season, knowing that he could be an impact player immediately in the NHL. As for the fit with the Devils, Hischier has already climbed atop the depth chart at center, but New Jersey will soon be able to boast amazing youth and depth down the middle with the addition of Hughes. Finnish winger Kaapo Kakko has pressured Hughes to be the top pick this year, but many still see him as a close second. The Rangers won’t mind, as Kakko is an extraordinary offensive talent who will score goals and throw his body around right away in the NHL. Kakko could become a major star in the New York market with his flashy goal-scoring ability and will certainly have the opportunity to play a major role right away. At third overall, there are many options for the Blackhawks, but the early expectation based on organizational depth would be a skilled forward like Vasili Podkolzin or Alex Turcotte. Chicago already has several promising young defensemen in the pipeline and can now add an elite forward to their growing young core of Alex DeBrincat, Dylan Strome, and Brendan Perlini. Now relegated to the No. 4 pick, the Avalanche will still undoubtedly get a strong player, just as they did two years ago with Cale Makar, if not an immediate contributor in the top remaining prospect on their board. A player like big Canadian center Dylan Cozens would fit in nicely with what Colorado is building.

Now that the order is set, the next step is the draft itself. Everyone may have their projections, but only the day of will reveal the actual futures of these teams and players. This year’s draft is set to take place in Vancouver beginning on June 21st, a day that New Jersey, New York, and Chicago are now much more excited for. Stay tuned.

2019 NHL Draft Lottery Odds

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The regular season has ended, but for those 15 teams who missed the playoffs the wait won’t be long for the first exciting event of the off-season. The 2019 NHL Entry Draft may be more than ten weeks away, but the league has moved this year’s NHL Draft Lottery up several weeks to this coming Tuesday, April 9th, before the postseason even begins. With the final league standings in place after yesterday’s results and the teams with ping pong balls to be selected now set, here are the odds for the No. 1 overall pick in this years draft:

31st – Colorado Avalanche (from Ottawa Senators): 18.5%

30th – Los Angeles Kings: 13.5%

29th – New Jersey Devils: 11.5%

28th – Detroit Red Wings: 9.5%

27th – Buffalo Sabres: 8.5%

26th – New York Rangers: 7.5%

25th – Edmonton Oilers: 6.5%

24th – Anaheim Ducks: 6.0%

23rd – Vancouver Canucks: 5.0%

22nd – Philadelphia Flyers: 3.5%

21st – Minnesota Wild: 3.0%

20th – Chicago Blackhawks: 2.5%

19th – Florida Panthers: 2.0%

18th – Arizona Coyotes: 1.5%

17th* – Montreal Canadiens: 1.0%

It’s important to note that while the odds at winning the first overall pick are listed, there are lottery selections for each of the first three picks in the draft with each team’s odds increasing proportionally after each selection starting with first overall. The prize this year for Tuesday night’s lucky winner is expected to be U.S. National Team Development Program center Jack Hughes, an elite play-making pivot who has been wowing scouts for years. The consolation prize of picking second is not too shabby either; Finnish scoring winger Kaapo Kakko has closed the gap on Hughes and is also considered an elite talent. The No. 3 pick is finally where there will be some intrigue in June. Many feel Russian winger Vasili Podkolzin will be the pick, but a team may opt for a different style of forward like Canadians Dylan Cozens and Kirby Dach or Hughes’ teammate Alex Turcotte, while a D-needy club could reach for promising defender Bowen Byram. 

The NHL Draft Lottery will be nationally televised by NBC Sports, Sportsnet, and TVA beginning at 8pm ET on Tuesday. As opposed to last year, when the lottery took place over two separate sessions during playoff game intermissions, the event will return to being an independent hour-long show. Tune in to see who the big winner could be this year and how the top of the first round will look in this year’s draft.

Arizona Coyotes Sign Erik Kallgren

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The Arizona Coyotes have added another young goaltender to the organization, signing Erik Kallgren to a two-year entry-level contract. Kallgren played this season in Sweden’s second league, and needed to be signed by this summer or become an unrestricted free agent.

Originally selected in the seventh round of the 2015 draft, 22-year old Kallgren recorded a .920 save percentage in 32 starts for AIK before joining the Tucson Roadrunners on an amateur tryout recently. He’ll likely make the jump full time to North America next season, where he can continue to develop within the organization.

Interestingly, the Coyotes already have several young goaltenders in the system including Adin Hill who showed he may be ready for the NHL before long. Hunter Miska is a restricted free agent this summer, but Merrick Madsen is also under contract. With Darcy Kuemper and Antti Raanta locked into NHL spots for next season, it’s going to be a crowded goaltending pipeline in Arizona.

Minor Transactions: 04/05/19

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The NHL has just one playoff spot left to determine, and it’s going to come down to the wire. The Columbus Blue Jackets and Montreal Canadiens are tied at 94 points but the former has a chance to punch their ticket tonight. The Blue Jackets are ahead on the regulation+overtime wins (ROW) tiebreaker meaning if they win tonight the Canadiens won’t be able to catch them. As they and the rest of the NHL prepare for the last weekend of the regular season, we’ll be here keeping track of all the minor moves.

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have returned Adam Johnson to the minor leagues after six games, giving their minor league affiliate a huge boost for the final few games of the AHL season. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins are just three points out of a playoff spot in the AHL’s Atlantic Division, and Johnson is one of their best offensive players with 40 points in 63 games this season.
  • Chris Thorburn has been recalled by the St. Louis Blues, a veteran addition as they head into the playoffs. Thorburn has played in just a single game for the Blues this season, instead spending the majority of the year at the minor league level for the first time since 2005-06. The 35-year old forward can provide a physical presence if required, but isn’t likely to make a huge impact in the playoffs.
  • The Arizona Coyotes have returned Adin Hill to the minor leagues now that they’ve been eliminated from the playoffs. Hill was recalled to give them some insurance after Darcy Kuemper suffered a minor injury, but wasn’t needed after all.
  • The Anaheim Ducks have sent Andy Welinski back to the minor leagues and are expected to assign more players to the San Diego Gulls in the coming days. The Ducks won’t be heading for the playoffs this season, but they can at least help the Gulls on their pursuit of a Calder Cup.
  • Christian Wolanin and Rudolfs Balcers are on their way back to the Belleville Senators, as Mark Borowiecki and Bobby Ryan may return tomorrow for the Ottawa Senators. Wolanin and Balcers will help a Belleville team that is battling hard for a playoff spot against the Cleveland Monsters.
  • The exodus has begun in Florida, where the Panthers have sent Jayce Hawryluk, Dryden Hunt and Sam Montembeault back to the Springfield Thunderbirds. The Thunderbirds are technically still alive in the playoff chase, but would need an awful lot of things to go right over the last few games.
  • Nathan Walker has been recalled by the Washington Capitals, likely meaning that a handful of forwards will be getting tomorrow night’s game off. The 25-year old has played three games with the team this season, but spent the majority of it in the minor leagues once again. Walker became the first Australian player (though he was actually born in Wales) to suit up in an NHL game last season, and has 34 points in 54 games this year with the Hershey Bears.
  • The Edmonton Oilers have finally sent Josh Currie back to the AHL after the veteran minor leaguer enjoyed an unexpectedly long stretch at the top level in his first career NHL call-up. Currie scored two goals and five points in 21 games with the Oilers since joining the team in mid-February. He’ll now join the Bakersfield Condors, who lead the AHL’s Pacific Division and are preparing for a deep playoff run.

Wild Notes: Parise, Sturm, Schuldt

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As we speak, the Minnesota Wild are playing what amounts to a must-win game against the Arizona Coyotes. Neither team is in a playoff position as of now, but it still represents a potential four-point shift in the Western Conference wild card race. The Coyotes currently sit in ninth place, three points back of the Colorado Avalanche for the final postseason berth. The Wild are in tenth place, just one point behind the ’Yotes. A Minnesota regulation win would see them leapfrog Arizona to pull within two points of Colorado, but an Arizona regulation win would put Minnesota three points back of the nine seed and still four points back of the eight seed, which might be insurmountable with only three games remaining after today.

Hurting the chances of a much-needed Wild win today is the continued absence of star forward Zach Parise. Unfortunately, he may not be returning at all this season. Just prior to puck drop, beat writer Sarah McLellan reported that Parise would not be active for the game, which was not a great surprise, but added that head coach Bruce Boudreau has qualified Parise’s lower-body ailment as “significant”. While she writes that the team “hopes” he might play again this season, it seems far from certain. Parise has now missed four games in a row and with three games left his chances to return are running out. A loss today would substantially lower the odds of Parise being rushed back to action as well. The 34-year-old has enjoyed a resurgence this season, leading the team with 26 goals and 59 points, but this is a disappointing end to an otherwise encouraging season for the veteran.

  • The Athletic’s Michael Russo believes that the Wild are “pushing hard” for college free agent forward Nico Sturm. The Clarkson University captain is considered the top defensive forward in the NCAA and has improved offensively in each of his four collegiate seasons as well. The concern with Sturm is that the 23-year-old may have already peaked in his development and could project as nothing more than a fourth-liner at the NHL level. However, with good size and a mature game, Sturm does have the added benefit of being able to contribute right away, even if not on the score sheet. In fact, Russo writes that if Sturm lands in Minnesota, he is likely to join the Wild right away and burn a year off his entry-level contract.
  • There has been plenty of speculation as to where St. Cloud State University defenseman Jimmy Schuldt might end up and the rumor mill has only heated up since the Huskies were unceremoniously upset for the second straight year in their first game of the NCAA Tournament. At one point, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Schuldt would follow teammate Ryan Poehling to the Montreal Canadiens, but those whispers have subsided and many other contenders have entered the fray. Count the Wild as one such interested club. The Athletic’s Jake Jensen writes that Minnesota is at least “in the race” for Schuldt, alongside the L.A. Kings and Vegas Golden Knights. Potentially the best undrafted defender in college hockey this season, Schuldt will be a nice prize for whichever team he decides to join.

Coyotes Sign Nick Schmaltz To Seven-Year Extension

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Nick Schmaltz only played in 17 games for the Arizona Coyotes this season, following a November trade from the Chicago Blackhawks and prior to a season-ending lower-body injury. However, the 14 points he recorded in those 17 games certainly made an impression on the ’Yotes front office. The team has signed the young center to a long-term extension, reports The Athletic’s Craig Morgan. The Coyotes have confirmed the signing.  Morgan adds that the breakdown of the deal, which carries a $5.85MM AAV and is considerably backloaded, is as follows:

2019-20: $2.5MM base salary, $500K signing bonus
2020-21: $3MM base salary
2021-22: $5MM base salary, $1MM signing bonus
2022-23: $4.5MM base salary
2023-24: $7.5MM base salary
2024-25: $6.95MM base salary, $1.5MM signing bonus
2025-26: $7MM base salary, $1.5MM signing bonus

The deal also carries a ten-team no-trade clause in the final three years.

Schmaltz, 23, has three years of NHL experience to his credit already, but was working on a breakout campaign after the move to Arizona. A first-round pick of the Blackhawks in 2014 out of the U.S. National Team Development Program, Schmaltz starred for the University of North Dakota for two years before turning pro. His rookie year was split between the NHL and AHL, but he still manged to record 28 points in 61 games. However, it was his sophomore season when Schmaltz began turning heads. He compiled 52 points in 78 games for Chicago, playing much of the season as the team’s second-line center. Yet, the team still decided to move on from Schmaltz even after another strong start this season, swapping him for young Coyotes forwards Dylan Strome and Brendan Perlini. The Blackhawks likely have no regrets about the deal, but Arizona is happy to have a new core forward, as evidenced by the extension. Schmaltz had 25 points in 40 games prior to his injury, but if he had continued his scoring pace after landing in the desert, Schmaltz would have been a 60-point player this season.

The Coyotes certainly hope that the young pivot can rebound from his injury and get back to that scoring trajectory next season. Arizona is pushing for a playoff spot this season, but is still a ways away from being a true contender. Schmaltz’ continued development will play a major role in the team’s ongoing pursuit of consistent success. A poised play-maker, Schmaltz has the potential to grow into the team’s No. 1 center and power play quarterback. That is certainly the expectation, as the extension makes Schmaltz the team’s third-highest paid player heading into next season. GM John Chayka said of Schmaltz that “Nick is a highly skilled, creative, young center with extremely high upside. Getting Nick signed to a long-term extension is another positive step towards building a sustainable contender here in the Valley.” Even if Schmaltz never exceeds the 50-60 point range, this is still a good signing for the Coyotes, who needed another trusted forward and now have one for the next seven years in the intelligent and confident center. The only concern with the term will be if nagging injuries slow Schmaltz down over the course of the contract.

For his part, Schmaltz is not worried about injuries and is only looking forward to the years ahead of him in Arizona. The team press release quoted Schmaltz as saying “I’m very excited to sign a long-term contract with the Coyotes. We have a great core of young, talented players in Arizona and I’m looking forward to coming back healthy next season and contributing for many years to come. We have a very bright future here and I’m thrilled to be a part of it.” That is exactly what ’Yotes fans want to hear from a player that is now in for the long-haul, expected to be a star and leader for years to come.

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