The Arizona Coyotes re-signed their of their own as free agency opened on Friday, agreeing to new deals with defensemen Kevin Connauton, Klas Dahlbeck, and Jarred Tinordi.
Having bolstered his defense with the signing of Alex Goligoski prior to free agency, Arizona Coyotes General Manager John Chayka appears content to keep a few familiar faces for depth.
Klas Dahlbeck agreed to a one-year, one-way contract worth $750,000 to remain in Glendale.
Kevin Connauton agreed to a two-year, one-way contract worth $1M per year. Jarred Tinordi also signed a two-way deal with the team.
The deals leave the Coyotes with just restricted free agents Michael Stone and Connor Murphy to sort out among the defensive corps.
Kevin Connauton Returns To The Arizona Coyotes
Here’s the press release from the Yotes on the Connauton re-signing:
"Arizona Coyotes General Manager John Chayka announced today that the Coyotes have signed defenseman Kevin Connauton to a two-year contract. As per club policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed."
"The 26-year-old Connauton totaled 5-12-17 with 60 penalty minutes (PIM) in 65 games with the Coyotes and Columbus Blue Jackets last season and has recorded 15-31-46 with 111 PIM in 163 career NHL games with the Dallas Stars, Blue Jackets and Coyotes."
"The Edmonton, Alberta native was originally drafted in the third round (89th overall) by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2009 Entry Draft."
More from Howlin' Hockey
- How the Arizona Coyotes could line-up with Logan Cooley signed
- Report: Logan Cooley could be closer to signing Arizona Coyotes ELC
- Arizona Coyotes sign Matias Maccelli to three-year deal
- Ivan Prosvetov signs one-year deal with Arizona Coyotes
- Arizona Coyotes cut Galchenyuk after reported police incident
Connauton got a good deal of playtime down the stretch last season, including a bit of a starring role while Oliver Ekman-Larsson was out for a few games.
He performed admirably stepping in for OEL, and it would appear his destiny is to be paired up with someone in the bottom pairing now that Goligoski is a Coyote.
Re-signing Connauton seems like a good move from Chayka and co, however, based on the adaptability the 26-year-old showed for the team last season.
As Does Klas Dahlbeck
After the season, I said that what happened otherwise with the team would greatly influence whether or not Klas Dahlbeck would return to the Coyotes.
Considering that Dahlbeck was a drag on possession, it seemed even more unlikely that he’d remain with the team once the Arizona Coyotes promoted John Chayka to general manager.
Despite those caveats, Dahlbeck was the first of the pair in the fold. Perhaps Head Coach Dave Tippett and Chayka have a plan for how to better utilize Mr. Dahlbeck, or they just feel the group needs his physicality.
It’s possible he’s here merely to rotate into the lineup when necessary.
Tinordi Returns
In a bit of a surprise, John Chayka also re-signed Jarred Tinordi on Friday to a two-way deal.
Jarred Tinordi was suspended for twenty games last season for violating the league’s Performance Enhancing Substances Program.
Next: 2015-16 Player Grades: Kevin Connauton Stepped Into...
He only touched the ice in seven games with the Arizona Coyotes last season.