Arizona Coyotes need trade to sweep aside rebuild
The new, younger, quicker Arizona Coyotes are making headlines across the NHL as THE up and coming team, but for all the hoopla there’s still a powerful piece of the puzzle missing: one last trade.
Arizona Coyotes fans have always turned their heads toward the future, and there’s reason to be more optimistic about that future now than ever.
But when I talk to Arizona Coyotes fans, the sense I get is that it’s time for the future to be now, and if the team expects people to buy in, it needs to provide a return on that investment with some winning.
Not next year. Not in 2018. Now.
Filling in the last piece to the puzzle won’t be easy or cheap, and it certainly won’t be without controversy.
It will require a trade, perhaps giving up one, or two, or even three players that some Arizona Coyotes fans are attached to or see as part of the future, but in order to win now you’ve got to be willing to give somebody up.
Not one of the untouchable players, like Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Max Domi, or Anthony Duclair, but just about anyone else has to be fair game in a trade.
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
Heading into the fall with goaltending set and a stable of blue-liners on the roster, all evidence points to the forward lines as the area that’s now keeping GM John Chayka and Head Coach Dave Tippett up at night.
After all, the top line pairing of Martin Hanzal with Duclair and Domi will surely keep defenders sweating it out with the skill, speed, and sheer talent they have to contend with.
Getting Tobias Rieder signed to a new deal is also crucial.
But after they come off the ice, with the departure of Antoine Vermette and the need to infuse some young talent into the offense like Dylan Strome and Christian Dvorak, the forward lines will be dictated by which prospects make the team this year.
And that’s a huge gamble.
The key to solidifying the Arizona Coyotes’ front is pulling off one more trade.
Packaging a piece, or pieces, of the blue-line depth with a prospect to grab a sure-fire forward is the likely last move on the chess board.
Coyotes fans on the other hand, don’t just want an empty shirt…they want a name.
Chayka has publicly discussed the possibility of making some type of move. But how that move would fit, set against the backdrop of Chayka’s analytics nature, is the question mark.
Chayka likely wants a player with the on-ice tendencies, numbers, and corresponding salary to fill in the blank. Coyotes fans, on the other hand, don’t just want an empty shirt with a particular skill set to round out the team.
They want a name.
Names bring excitement, attention, and enthusiastic fans filling the seats. This is critical for the Coyotes fan base.
Transitioning from a team buying out the salaries of retired players to a team looking to buy or trade for players is a must. The arena fiasco in Glendale, past ownership, and the lack of winning has combined to build a reputation of uncertainty.
Now there’s new ownership and management looking to reverse that, and hopefully a new arena on the horizon bringing in new fans on a new side of town.
A skilled, big-name forward is what’s needed to bring it all together.
Next: Doan Has Biggest Impact On Hockey's Growth In The Desert
The Coyotes are poised to announce the location of a new arena that they can call home.
If they want to sell-out that new arena, they need to start winning now, and making off-season moves worthy of an NHL winner.